It's the 1'st week of #Choosejoy and #JoyGivers365 !! YAY! I have been so excited about this, blogging in my mind each night as I go to sleep.
What I have noticed this week is how my mind is beginning to notice and register when I am being negative and complaining and being a Davie Downer! This is a good thing! You can't change what you don't acknowledge (or see). And yes, I totally just quoted Dr Phil. I heart Dr Phil!
Anyways, back to what I was saying. If you live in Indiana or anywhere around us you will know that were are in the midst of #Snowmageddon14 and #Deepfreeze14 (another side note, one of my absolute favorite movies is Armageddon! I cry everytime I watch it! So much that my Mom has banned me from watching it at their house, because she can't stand me sobbing during it.) We got 7+ inches of snow last Thursday and then over this weekend we received another 10 inches of snow, and our temps have been in the negatives.
Proof.
It got lower than this but I was huddled under 3 blankets.
Needless to say, there were ALOT of reasons I could have complained. And I caught myself almost doing so!
But I decided that I was going to #choosejoy so I came up with several good things about being stuck inside.
1. I did not have to go outside for any reason. It's currently Tuesday night, I haven't been outside since Saturday. Working from home is a beautiful beautiful thing!
2. I am nice and warm. My upstairs floor was actually 74 when I woke up today. I caught myself complaining about how warm it was, and then realize that so many are cold and without power. It's -20 outside and I'm complaining about it being too warm upstairs?!
3. I have plenty of food and water to last me for quite some time.
4. I have plenty to watch on tv and read, thanks to Beth Moore giving away 14 ebooks! Thanks Beth!
5. I got my entire house cleaned and took down Christmas.
6. I was able to organize my studio and work on things for my students for the upcoming weeks.
7. No alarm clock. I LOVE days when I don't have to set an alarm!
8. It's been quiet, oh so quiet in my complex. Just a peaceful stillness that the snow has brought on and it's been so nice to just have that quiet before getting back into the swing of things.
9. I have cooked. I have cooked ALOT! My future husband just might not starve to death after all.
10. I haven't had to do my hair, put on makeup, wear my contacts, or put on clothing that doesn't have an elastic waist in almost a week.
Now those are just some things I am thankful for during this season of snow. As you can imagine it is a bit hard to be a #joygiver365 when you don't see anyone, so I thought I would highlight a way that someone was a #joygiver to me back in Dec, that didn't even realize it.
Way back in December, I needed to get gas and was rushing to get it before going home to teach. I had rewards at Speedway for 90 cents off (I love coupons!) but upon getting to the gas station I realized I didn't have my speedway card.
I went inside not sure what to do, and there was a lady standing in line for the check out. She was only there to purchase a Coke Icee (Sidenote I love love love Coke Icees!) I decided to take a chance and approached her and asked if she had a speedway card (I was hoping to use it) despite the fact that she was only there for an Icee and had plans on her own, she was SO nice! She told me that yes she did, but you didn't even need one, they could do it by your phone number, and then told me she would show me after she checked out! Bless that woman! She paid for her icee and then stood off to the side, despite the check out clerk telling her she could leave! ha! She replied that she was helping this lady (me) and entered in her info and pin so i could use her card. Showing me step by step how to use it.
This whole thing maybe took a minute and a half. It was not a lengthy experience by any means. But she made such an impact on me, that almost a month later I am still thinking about it and how kind she was to help me.
It just shows that being a #joygiver365 doesn't mean you have to do some super huge act. You don't even have to spend money. Just taking a literal minute or less, out of your day to help someone else can make a big impact!
One of my favorite things to do is run ahead of people (not literally, I run like a 3 legged tortoise) and open the door to a store/restaurant/wherever and stand outside and hold it open for them like a doorman. It's amazing to see how their faces change once they realize that you are purposely doing something nice for them. Simple, small things can turn around someone's day. You don't have to be Oprah giving away cars on your personal tv show. Just take a moment. to do something nice for someone. It's the small things that can make someone smile and feel special and dare I say it, even loved!
So my challenge for the week. Take one minute, out of each day to try and do something nice for someone. If you're like me, this can be as small as letting someone pull out in front of you in traffic, or go ahead of you at a 4 way stop. Make sure you wave and smile as you do it!
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