Do Unto Others, and Yourself
By Jamie Drake
“We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give.” -Winston Churchill-
I recently ran a gently used baby clothes drive at my daughter’s nursery school. The clothes went to local families in need. I carted boxes and bags full of coats, hats, shoes and clothes that were given to families that need them. I enjoyed being the one who saw this task through and I’m grateful to all the families who were willing to sort through their belongings and donate to a worthy cause. Spring is a great time of year to de-clutter and donate!
Over the last few months, I have been on a journey of self-discovery. I’m in the process of both literally and figuratively de-cluttering my house and my body, and I am learning a great deal about the difference between want and need. I’ve filled bags with unneeded clothes and belongings to donate to charity. I’ve even cleansed my body with The Isagenix Cleansing System. I’m taking a long, hard look at what I have in my life so I can mentally sort out what makes me happy, and what doesn’t. You can’t expect change if you don’t make changes. I’m optimistic about my results, proud of my community service efforts and filled with zealous when I think about what will come next in my journey.
What a wonderful path I am on, but I cannot lose sight of the importance of taking time for myself. I’m most looking forward to having my daughters watch me go through this transformation and hoping that they see the happiness it brings me. As parents, we have to work at keeping this a priority or it seems to drift away. And, sometimes being a good parent means finding the time to take a break from parenting.
My afternoon cup of tea has become the small bit of ME time that I can carve into just about every day. 
Heating the water, grabbing my favorite mug, picking a tea…all menial tasks that prepare me to have a few minutes to sit, sip and take it easy. I find that while being mindful of my own needs, I can find pleasure in all of those small steps. Being in the moment and not letting my thoughts wander to past mistakes or future stressors is like a gift I can give myself in the midst of a busy day. When I stop and feel grateful for the time I am taking for myself, I feel like I have made a small step in the right direction.
By creatively caring for our families, our communities and ourselves with equal enthusiasm we create an important guide for our children to follow. Our children will look to us to see what to value; it’s our job to give them something positive to look at. So do unto others, but don’t forget to do unto yourself!
Creatively Caring and its partners have created many wonderful opportunities for families to give back such as Bernie’s Book Bank, Niles Township Food Pantry, and Project Linus just to name a few. By creating these formative activities to attend with our children, Creatively Caring is helping us instill these beneficial and gratifying life habits in our children. When they learn to help others while also taking time to honor themselves, they become well balanced, happy people capable of giving and receiving love in the most wonderful ways.
About Jamie…
I’m on a journey to find my happy place. I’m a Mom who has made a solemn promise to myself, my husband and 2 daughters to be my best self. My Happy Promise is to love this life and this is my journey to get there. Please check out my blog… http://myhappypromise.wordpress.com/
