Snow Day!

It's March which means it's time to start another month of bettering myself. This month it's "contemplate the heavens". In her book, Gretchen does this in August but I decided since I already read to Deuteronomy 4 (which on the timeline is March 2), and since I intend to do this for the rest of the year, I should move it to March for me. It doesn't matter what order I do them in - just that I try them. 

In December, I wrote: "This one will be started earlier than August because I intend to fully read the Bible by the time I am 30. That means roughly three pages a day. Maybe I'll step it up this month and double up? I don't know. I've always been really spiritual and feel it usually makes people better people to put God before themselves... and you end up helping others more if you do this too."

I am not just going to focus on religion though. Contemplating the heavens is more than just spirituality. It's about being thankful for all that I've been given. For me, I have always had a fear of death. Not necessarily me dying. It's more a fear of people I love dying. I will be trying to tell people how much I care about them in case something were to happen. And try to appreciate the life I've been blessed with more so I am not regretful later in life. So it's threefold.  

Since this is SUCH a big topic, while I have 9 things on my checklist, the things I do don't have to be GRAND. Little things count. My 9 topics are: 

1. Imitate a spiritual master (like treating someone the way I want to be treated or being the change I want to see in the world).
2. Keep a one sentence gratitude journal (knowing me it won't be just 1 sentence).
3. Help someone or tell them something nice (but not forced).
4. Love the life I've been given not the one I want (yes it's good to improve but living in the future is not good either).
5. Complain less and turn complaints into thankfulness. 
6. Be in awe of something/someone. 
7. Contemplate death. (Ugh, this one is hard for me). 
8. Do something to look back on and be proud of. 
9. Count my blessings.

I really only had access to dogs today so imitating a spiritual master wasn't in the cards (same as #3) but I did start the one sentence gratitude journal that I will update daily. Unsure about how start #4. Number 5 was successfully done. I hate snow days. But instead of hating it - I embraced it as probably (unless it snows again which is unlikely given this winter) the last time I will live in this house with snow covering it since Scott and I hope to have our own home by next December. I also cuddled with the pups and finished season 2 of Downton Abbey. I was in awe of how beautiful the snow looked for #6. After reading about how Queen Elizabeth's dad died when she was only 25, I thought about how I would be today if my dad had actually died when I was 12 (which he almost did). I can not imagine my life without him. It's going to be baby steps on #7 so I started with a "what if?". This is my greatest fear and the thing that I try to avoid the most. I will always be proud of the fact that I captured this on camera since it might be the last time - #8.

As for #9 - I count my blessings every single morning. It is the first thing I do when I get in my car. I start a prayer and among other things, I name all of the people I care about and ask God to watch over all of you and protect you from accident, illness, injury, death and harm. I then thank Him for everything he's given to me, often naming the things I care about most. The last things I do are ask him for favor with anyone who I feel at odds with and to do anything He wants me to do that day to make Him proud. I have had a wonderful life and I aim to be grateful for all of my adventures, friends and family. There are so many things that could've gone wrong that didn't and there are so many things I've done that others haven't. I know how blessed I am and I don't take it for granted.