Vision Board - My path to the future....

How many of you have heard of the "Law of Attraction"?  What seems like a far-fetched idea is actually one that is based both biblically and scientifically.  And it is amazing to know that what you focus on, and the energy that you put into your life is where you see results.  You know the adage..."Ask and you shall receive"?  While it is not January 1st and time for New Years Resolutions, what it is time for is an update to my attention and things that I want to focus on in order to see change.  This is some insight into me and maybe some inspiration for you to challenge yourself and make yourself uncomfortable to create change. 

I have a lot on my mind when it comes to this kind of stuff.  By nature, I am a planner and always, always go into things with a plan and strategy.  I am at my best when I have a strategy. I am great specifically at this type of thing at work, great with my kids, but not so much when it comes to myself.  It's a new year (even though it's February) and I want to have a focus on three areas in my world. 

First and foremost, I want to make a concentrated effort with my health.  You see, I have rheumatoid arthritis.  It's tolerable most of the time, and I manage.  But when I have a flare up, it's bad.  It is usually in my knees and it renders me to crutches or immobile.  I deal, with it, and I take medication for it.  I am so grateful for mobility....it's something most people take for granted.  I forget that I have this disease and then out of the blue I flare and I am reminded again that I have this "thing" that I deal with.  It's been a couple of years since I was diagnosed and I have never really made an effort to change what I am eating in an effort to help manage this disease.  This year I am making a change.  So much of what we eat is processed, high in carbs, loaded with fats and sugars.  None of that is good for the body.  So this year, to make my condition more tolerable, I am changing what I am eating.  I am responsible for what I put into my body.  I am responsible for what I do with my body.  I a going to eat clean, healthy and on purpose.  I will not be eating to fill a need or pass the time, I will be eating to prevent flare-ups in my body.  I will be eating to reduce inflammation and eating to feel really, really good.  I am going to eat tons of greens, tons of strawberries, lean organic meats and as gluten-free as possible.  I am also going to removed bleached flours from my diets.  While I love the big yummy Jesus yeast rolls (because Jesus...they are good), it is time to say BYE-BYE to this old Friend of mine.  It's going to be hard, but it's going to be worth it.  Period.

Secondly, I am going to learn to really enjoy my time off and enjoy things that I already own.  We live in a society that is pushing for more, more, more.  I look around at all that I have accumulated over the last 13 years of marriage and am almost embarrassed by how much "stuff" I have.  So I am going to purge a little, reuse a little and enjoy A LOT!  I want to have a simplicity to my world.  By learning true gratitude for my world, I will enjoy my STUFF and enjoy my time off and not have nearly the stress that I have carried in the past for owning things.  They are, after all, only things.  I have a lot of stuff to enjoy and be grateful for!

Lastly when I am off, I want to relax and really be in the moment.  It has hit me this year that my daughter is leaving for college in a year in half.  Her time at home is almost over.  I could cry and cry if I think too hard about it as  don't think I prepared myself as well as I could have.  So between now and that day, every minute counts.  Honestly it's not just her, every minute counts anyway for everyone.  It is so easy to get caught in the moment, caught up in the stress and miss out on the opportunity to embrace the world.  I lost my grandmother at Christmas and I didn't get a final moment to say I love you.  She knew, but I didn't make my last time with her really count.  I don't ever want to say that again about anyone I love.  Being in the moment is what God wants for our lives.  He wants us to enjoy our families and those that we love.  When we approach things in the context of love, things change.  When you seek things out of love, they come to you. 

So that's it...those three things are my focus for this year.

I made a vision board for my office so I can "see" the things that I want to find.  You will see on this board that there are pictures of things I already have.  This is because I want to really enjoy those things and embrace the gifts that have already been given.  There are some dreams on there too, so don't be too impressed by the pretty house on there!!  That's a dream lake house...darn it...I am learning to really appreciate what I already have!!  I love my lake house, it is my most serene place to be.  I love being there surrounded by my kids and my husband.  The phone doesn't work there, we have no internet and it is just our family together.  More to share and come on that later!! 

Back to the vision board...below is my board.  It talks about the healthiest me, doing exercise daily, having balance and feeling good.  It reminds me how much I love the lake and the water...but most of all it is a reminder of my family.  They are the most important.  Nowhere on the vision board...for me, anyway, does it talk about a career.  That is a ways to a mean.  I am worthy of all of these things that I have written about and capable of doing all of them.  Whew....that's off my chest and DO feel better!  Enjoy my board and thank you for letting me bend your ear!!  And I will keep you all updated on my progress on my works in progress over the next year!!

Until next time...

~Amanda