Wow! I am nearly half way through my 31 Day Blog Challenge. I have found it to be great so far. It has given me the push I needed to write about something every day. Some of the topics have pushed me to share things I normally would be too embarrassed to write about on a blog or think that no one could possibly be interested in reading about, but I decided to stay true to myself and dig a little deeper to share my life. Today I am going to take a little break from the challenge and do a little homework!
My friend Liz shared 5 mantras she is going to incorporate into her life over on her blog be.love.live She then set a homework challenge to come up with our own 5 mantras. So I am sharing some that I already try to live by and a couple that I would like to incorporate into my life.
- Just Breathe…
Well this is of course the name of my blog, but also a mantra I use all the time. I say this to try and calm myself when I feel I am becoming anxious or nervous either before a situation or during. I say this to my daughter a lot too, as she gets quite nervous before school and in different environments and situations. I have to say it doesn’t work all the time (some things can be just too stressful), but it does help to say it in my head a few times before heading out.
- You’re ok, you can do this…
This one is similar to the one above and again something I use to calm myself. This is a good one to boost me a little bit when I am doubting my ability. Saying this when I am trying to do something that is just not working and I am getting frustrated and beginning to think that I am completely useless, can really turn things around. (and a few big deep breathes in helps to calm down!)
- Breathing in, I arrive in my body. Breathing out, I am home. (-Thich Nhat Hahn)
This mantra is by Thich Nhat Hahn and although I did not come up with it myself, it is one I wanted to share as I love it. I first heard it in a mindfulness class during meditation and I have used it ever since. I just find it calms me and creates quiet for me. I love listening to recordings by Thich Nhat Hahn, I find they help me to clear my mind in meditation.
- I am grateful…
I am trying to say this mantra to myself more and more. I know in my heart I am grateful for everything I have in my life, but sometimes I need to stop and say it to my head. There are so many horrible things happening in this world that we don’t see much of the beauty and love anymore, so I feel I need to sometimes just stop and look at the beauty and love I have in my life and be grateful.
- I cannot live in the past, I need to live today…
I know there are lots of quotes and mantras written around this wording, but this is what I need to tell myself. I am someone who tends to look back (a lot) and I need to leave what has happened in the past, whether it was yesterday, last month, or many years ago. I need to focus on my present. What is happening right in this moment as I can’t change things that have been and gone. I need to say this mantra to stop myself dwelling on ‘what could have been’ and make the most of NOW.
just breathe... 