Life made simple

Apparently, my compass was already fixin to point north...

I read an article archived on one of my favorite blogs recently with a HUGE list of things you could begin doing to simplify your life. It's interesting how quitting smoking has allowed me to tap in to this well of determination and strength that I wasn't aware existed. Conquering this little beast, day by day, has given me this amazing feeling about what my future may hold. Feeling empowered is an amazing way to begin and complete each day. I may be exhausted. My body may be releasing toxins left and right in all these different (and some quite annoying or down right disgusting) ways but my mind is clear of the addiction speak.

What and enormous gift I have been given. I digress...

The list within the article I am raving about begins with this initiative:

1) Choose four-five priorities/themes/aspects/notions that are the most important to you in life. These are the four-five elements you would like your life to be focused and centered around.

Easy! Um....wait...is it?

It was hilarious! I sat down a few days ago thinking that I had this in the bag. One, Two, Three, Four, Five and done. Next! Not so, my friends, not so. Spots 1, 2 and 3 filled up quite quickly and then...I froze. Four and five? FOUR and FIVE? What the heck were my fourth and fifth elements? And so...I took a few days to think about it and today, I filled in spots four and five. I was patient with myself and I liked that feeling.

After I completed step number one, I rolled up my sleeves and prepared myself for the next big task. I was pleasantly surprised to see that I had already began to focus on the next five-ten initiatives. In fact, I had been doing some of the initiatives since moving to Florida. Steps like limiting media intake, television, consumerism, materialism. I have, by no means, been perfect at any of these steps but I found a morsel of pride in the fact that I had already begun to live some of the steps out.

I am not sure if there is something in the air or if I am simply feeling the effects of increased oxygen in my blood but life has been really blessed lately. There's a line from a song that I always think about when it comes to having pride:

"I wanna have pride, like my mama has, not like the kind in the Bible that turns you bad."

I feel that kind of pride today as I fall asleep and allow my body to repair itself and rest for another day. Pride in what I've been raised with. Pride that I am putting what I've been raised with to good use.