Family Matters – Nourishment
By Wendy Darling
At the time I’m writing this, it’s Valentine’s Day – a day when we take the time to acknowledge and express our love for each other. In my world EVERY day is LOVE day! Valentine’s Day is a wonderful reminder of how important it is to nourish the special relationships in our life!
So first of all…how are you nourishing YOURSELF? As a parent, it’s very important to ‘put your oxygen mask on first’… and that’s not always easy to remember! It’s easy to do all sorts of things for your children, but remember that you are the EXAMPLE of how to take good care of yourself! Every moment they are with you your children are watching and learning from your example. So take a little time out, nourish yourself, and I promise you your family will LOVE you for it! (Happy parent, Happy children!)
It’s also VERY important to help your children learn how to nourish themselves. Many people today have gotten caught up in DOING too much: we need to teach our children how to slow down and make their environment quiet. Turning off the TV, music and computers for a while and learning how to be quiet creates the ultimate nourishment! When was the last time your family sat in complete quiet? If it’s been a long time, you’ll see how much more love and nourishment you need: with the high noise levels that surround us these days, we all need to take some time out from it all … REALLY!
By creating more calm and quiet in your life, you are teaching your children how to ‘feel’ their way through life: they begin to learn to develop and use their intuition. When children know who they are and trust themselves in their life, they are preparing themselves for SUCCESS. The times are changing … and having a highly developed intuition creates a very special ‘insurance marker’ for your child’s future!
Last of all – if you don’t already do so – create family LOVE nights! If your children are old enough, let them take turns coming up with ideas … such as special evenings at home, or even some unique outings. Expressing love and appreciation go a long way towards improving your family’s health. At dinner, consider making it a ritual to share the special moments of your day – and take the time to share what you love and appreciate about each other. This builds stronger bonds between you, not to mention a healthy self-esteem!
Most important: take the time to love and nourish your special moments. Our ‘moments’ are all we truly know we have – and counting our blessings each and every day will give us the capacity to feel even more love in our lives!
Wendy Darling, M.Ed., Sp.Ed., is a Life Coach and founder of Thumbprints International, LLC. Wendy specializes in her Thumbprints MethodTM, a simple process that allows people to change easily! For information on Wendy speaking at an event or meeting, or to inquire about coaching with Wendy, she can be reached at wendy@yourthumbprint.com or 214-242-994
