HONOUR MY LIFE – Week Two Update (Pain, Milk & QAK)

2018 is my year of Honour. Instead of resolutions, I have given my year a theme. Honour. My focus is on my health, but I choose to honour all aspects of my life. My dreams, goals, relationships, friendships, work, sense of adventure ... everything. This is week 2.

Week 2 was another week of pain or I should say 5 days of pain. I have been blessedly pain-free (relatively speaking) for 2 days now. Thank goodness. Pain is, well, painful. So, once again I listened to/honoured my body and held off on the new exercise routine. Although I did get out for some walks. Check out the view on this day. 

BUT This week it changes. I’ve written Gym on the day timer and everything. I’m packing my gym bag tonight and I’m off in search of the treadmill with my name on it on Tuesday. This week I vow to sweat. 

Last week was another check in with the Naturopath. Everything is on track. She gave me a recipe for Golden Milk to drink daily to help with my inflammation. My Ketone diet is ketoning like it’s supposed to. I was weighed and measured and requested I not be told the results. I’m not really interested. Is that weird?I know me enough to know I’d probably beat myself up and who wants to live through that? I’m the Mohammed Ali of self-beating so I think I’ll keep that butterfly/sting locked up. 

I’m itching to get to the gym and I promise to look into a Yoga class. I will admit the thought of yoga scares me a little. The intelligent woman inside me knows it’s the right move. The self-preserving side of me is digging in her heels. Who will win this battle? Brains or brawn? I know its important that I find a class with A) a good instructor and B) Gentle Yoga … emphasis on Gentle. We’ll see what unfolds. 

So that’s my health. But my year of honour isn’t just about health. It’s about all areas of my life both inward and outward. 

 

I received an email a few days ago about gratitude, blah, blah, blah and Random Acts of Kindness. The RAOK catchphrase always bothered me. Not that actual phrase, but what it has turned into. You know what I mean? The people who purchase the coffee for the people behind them in line at Starbucks and then take a picture of it and post it on Facebook. Or the person filming them helping the homeless. I never understood that. What is their motivation really? To help? Or to get noticed? I'm the kind of gal who likes to give quietly. But as I pondered it this morning I thought to give quietly is one thing, but am I really giving that much? Turns out the answer is not really. I don't go out looking for it. I do it when the mood hits me or there's enough change floating in my purse. What? Am I selfish? No! I can't stand selfish people! That can't be! 

I ALWAYS THOUGHT OF MYSELF AS A GIVING PERSON. TURNS OUT I WAS WRONG. 

The same email gave a suggestion of giving double the tip at a restaurant as an act of kindness. What? Whoa? Hyperventilating That's too much. I already give 20% which is generous enough! I’m the type to haul out my phone and calculate the exact amount. My husband gets the evil eye when he tips too much. My Scottish roots run deep. Then I remembered being a single mother and receiving a huge tip from a woman I had served. Around 250%.  I wouldn’t except it. She held my hand in hers, put the money in it and said it’s yours. Keep it. My eyes welled with tears. I was now able to buy groceries. She asked me for another drink. I made her another one and brought it to the table. She paid for the drink and gave me a further $100. It's the only tip I remember in all of my years as a server. I don’t know her name, but I’ll never forget her ‘kindness’. 

Which got me thinking “How much would double the tip actually cost me in a year?” Probably not that much in reality. But what an impact it could have. Hmmm… 

Kindness doesn't come with a price tag though. How much does it cost to 


- Smile at the stranger walking on the street? Or better yet, the guy who cuts you off.

- Say a genuine hello to the homeless person you pass? 

- Pick up garbage on the sidewalk that isn’t yours? 

- Call the friend you haven't spoken to in a while just to say "Hi!"? 

- Ask the clerk scanning your groceries how their day is going? 

- Give a back-rub to someone you love?

 

Or, is it that much to send a card to a friend?

- Bring a treat to the office?

- Bring a meal to a friend who is ill? 

- Buy Coffee for a co-worker or stranger (just don't film it)?

 

Oh, I could do so much more than I do. 

 

So at risk of sounding like the person who posts on Social Media their RAOK, I am going to make this vow to you. I am going to change my ways. As part of my Year of Honour, Quiet Acts of Kindness QAK are now part of this girl's daily to do. I'm not going to be perfect, but I am bringing it to the forefront. I am going to work at it. Make a list and scratch them off. I am going to look for ways to be kind until it becomes a habit. Because when it comes down to it. This world could use a lot more kindness. I can do my part.

So what about you? What do you think about increasing your tips at restaurants? Or do you have some ideas of little things we can do to make the world a little nicer?