What Does Your Ideal Day Look Like?

You’ve probably answered some version of this question before and are ready to prattle off the answers by heart:

– Elbow deep in paint, each stroke a piece of your soul made visible, jars filled with brushes encircling you

– Pouring your heart out into your next novel, fingers typing wildly, a hot cup of coffee by your side

– Obsessively plotting out your latest course dedicated to helping other women, ink smudged sticky notes abound

Those are incredibly beautiful visions. And I deeply hope you have captured them and created them into reality. But today I want to ask you to think more deeply of your ideal day.

At any point in your ideal day, would you spend it shaming your body for the way it looks? Or would you be wildly enthusiastic and doting of yourself?

Would you read articles and books about how you are imperfect and if you follow these 10 super simple tricks you can finally, finally attain perfection? Or would you spend your time catching up on your favorite authors’ latest work to glean some new knowledge?

Would you choose to run on the treadmill for an hour while watching soap operas at the gym? Or would you hop, skip, swing and play?

Would you eat a bag of cheese puffs and mix up a metallic concoction of powdered vitamins into milk for dinner? Or would you choose to eat a deliciously lush salad and indulge in a decadently rich chocolate cake for dessert?

Yet we tend to lean towards the former in each scenario don’t we?

Today, I invite you to take those latter pieces and meld them into your day. To take the very spirit of your dreams and infuse it into your every day actions. To create self care rituals for yourself that nourish you to your very core.

To eat foods that make you feel alive, not necessarily the ones that are deemed “good foods”. To eat the vegetables that leave you feeling vibrant, and also the desserts that delight and light you up.

To skip mundane activities like the gym and treadmill in favor of hula hooping, dancing to your favorite song or a free flow yoga session in the living room.

To throw out all the magazines that tell you you need to be anyone that isn’t you and stock up on stacks of inspirational books and zines.

To have patience and encourage yourself. To treat yourself with the compassion you would give to a child. And to extend that kindness and grace to those around you.

When you do these things, you will start to discover a new found flow to your day. By going about your day with lighthearted ease, you make space in your day for happiness to find itself a way in. And, after all, isn’t that what you wanted all along?

– image source: Death to the Stock Photo