For the past few months, I have had the honor of hosting a gathering called Self-Love Fridays here in Portland. It has been such sweet work: practicing yoga, learning from a rotating gallery of self-care experts and talking among ourselves about how to truly care and love ourselves. The work has been truly transformative: we have cultivated new awareness about all the ways we care or neglect ourselves in daily life and have made tiny changes that over time truly shift everything.
Because so much of our community is spread out around this beautiful planet, I thought it would be useful to engage in conversation about the topic here.
Photo by Wonderlane, on Flickr. Creative Commons License
The Ritual of Joy//
One way to incorporate deeply nourishing self-care practices into our daily lives is through the ritual of joy. To practice the ritual of joy, take some time to think of the things (this can be super simple) that you love or the things that bring you joy. For me, the first things that come to mind are early mornings, tea and my daughter’s laugh.
Once you have a short list, choose one of the items (we’ll get to the others) to create a ritual for. For me, tea is the easiest choice. Once you have the item in mind, brainstorm ways to make a ritual around your experience of and enjoyment of that thing.
Some ideas:
- Create a special place for the ritual– a special chair, looking out a window;
- Light a candle or incense;
- Express gratitude out loud for the object of joy– I am always talking about how much I love tea;
- Use all of your senses to experience your joy-inducer– I smell the tea, feel the warmth of the steam on my face;
- Smile as you are about to enjoy it.
As you begin, keep it as simple as possible. Notice how you feel as you perform the ritual AND as you enjoy whatever it is that brings the joy. Double-joy!
I would love to hear what sorts of rituals you create. Please share your experiences.
Much love, Kelly
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