If I asked, “Do you have a day and a half you can use simply for yourself? To disconnect. To focus on yourself with no other responsibilities for family or work, etc. For self-care, for feeling better, for getting healthier.”
Most likely, the typical response would be something between laughter and suspicion regarding my sanity. In our over-scheduled lives, no one feels as though they have that kind of time.
But is that feeling accurate?
What if we looked at our daily routines a bit differently. For instance:
Each evening, before bed, we brush our teeth. According to our dentists, we should brush for 2 minutes. Each evening. That’s 2 minutes every day for 365 days. Which equals just over 12 hours each year. Or, a day and a half of our working lives.
What if for those 2 minutes each evening, as we wind down our day, we simply pause and concentrate on being grateful? Grateful for the basics of life – family, food, a quiet place to sleep. Grateful for employment. Grateful for little things, big things, and grateful for the choices we’ve made and the choices we didn’t make. When the toothbrush enters our mouths, our minds move into gratitude mode.
If we committed ourselves to doing this everyday, science tells us our mental, emotional, physically, and spiritually health would all be enhanced. Our relationships with others would be healthier. And our outlook on the future would be more stable and positive.
Actually, we all have a day and a half. It just depends on how we use it.
This article was originally posted on Jason’s Blog in August 2023. To read more, visit www.jasonmcneal.com.
