I’m participating in the 31 Days to Reset Your Life program at Happy Black Woman. The program is designed to help you evaluate your goals and priorities and think of them in the context of your life today and how you might be able to refocus on what’s important. Read on to learn about my experience with the challenge!
OK, it’s been more like 14 hours. But I know where this is going. Rosetta has challenged us to take one day, write down every complaint that comes across our mind, and turn it into a gratitude statement.
This was definitely an enlightening exercise. As I mentioned in my gratitude post, I do try to focus on being grateful for the things I have every day. But doing the activity really showed me the complaint feelings I have surrounding the silliest things… and as Rosetta expresses, these feelings really do effect every other aspect of ourselves and our mood in general.
I also noticed that my complaints were frequent in the beginning of the day but as I paid more attention to them, they got fewer and farther between. They have actually tapered off completely in the past few hours. That’s also because I’ve had more control over what I’ve been doing tonight… but I also believe it’s because my complaints have turned more intentional in my mind, which has switched their frequency. Things that felt worthy to complain about before just don’t anymore.
Well, I’m not shy! Here we go with my list, my complaints and my gratitude statements.
- 8:30 am – I didn’t get good sleep. I’m grateful that I will soon know if I have sleep apnea!
- 8:30 am – I have to wake up early. I’m grateful that I have the access to the sleep apnea test; they need the machine back at a certain time because there are others like me who want to know.
- 8:45 am – There is ice on my windows. I’m grateful I have a car to transport me to where I want to go, when I want to go.
- 8:50 am – Someone cut me off. I’m grateful that my deadline was flexible enough that such a small impact wouldn’t be a problem.
- 9:30 am – There’s a line at Starbucks. I’m grateful that I can afford occasional small luxuries.
- 9:45 am – I have to make breakfast for my boyfriend. I’m grateful I am off work this week and have time to do things for him, especially because he does so much for me!
- 10:30 am – I have to rush while getting ready. I’m grateful that I get to visit with my mom and aunt, who is only in the area twice a year.
- 12:00 pm – I don’t feel well. I’m grateful that I’m not doing the same boring thing today and putting myself out of my comfort zone, which probably is contributing to feeling different.
- 1:15 pm – There’s nowhere to sit at the restaurant I wanted to take my mom and aunt to. I’m grateful we can spend more time together, walk around the neighborhood more and come back to the restaurant.
- 1:30 pm – There’s only a small bench in the corner to sit at. I’m grateful we have somewhere to sit at all and that my mom and aunt can try the restaurant.
- 3:30 pm – The laundry room is full. I’m grateful that I have easy access to laundry facilities that work so well.
- 4:15 pm – Someone left the cap off the laundry detergent and it spilled all over. I’m grateful it spilled on clothes I could put in the load I was about to wash and that I have detergent to use.
- 4:30 pm – A prescription I submitted to be refilled won’t be ready until Tuesday. I’m grateful I can refill my prescriptions at home online and that I put in the request with adequate time before I’ll run out.
- 4:35 pm – I had to re-address and re-send a holiday card. I’m grateful to still have a valid address for this friend and have her in my life.
- 4:45 pm – Someone has not taken their clothes out of the dryers that are easier access. I’m grateful that I have clean facilities so close to me.
You get the gist!! Boy, when I write out my complaints like that they seem so silly. But it’s true that these were my thoughts today. It’s important that I identify that this is what I think and figure out how to switch my thinking so that I don’t complain about the little things. Because the big things are going pretty well for me indeed.
-N.C.