Last week, I decided that I wanted to start my new year by writing my list of 100 Life-Giving Activities. When I first read about this idea, I was immediately intrigued, “What would it be like to give more thought and time towards the activities that give us life, that give us breathing space?” I was all for it, and wanted to share this idea with anyone who was interested. By and large, the response was positive, as many folks wanted to incorporate more joy in their life. Even so, there were some concerns about doing this exercise:
“Wow! That sounds awesome! I’d never thought of doing something like that. It seems a little hard.”
“Do I even have 100 activities to list?”
“Why 100? Why not 50? I think 10 is more doable.”
“It would be interesting to make that list, but what would you do with it? I mean, what’s the point?”
I was so grateful for all of these responses, because they were EXACTLY the same kind of Monkey Mind thoughts that I encountered when I sat down to write my list. And I’m so glad that I set up an accountability buddy, because any one of these thoughts might have derailed me from completing the list. At first, I started to list experiences that I felt gave me joy. But, I remembered that the focus was on being an active agent in your life, and I switched to using active verbs.
The first 15 activities were a breeze, and the next 30 or so also came pretty easily. But, after that, I found that I definitely had to dig a little deeper to excavate experiences that support feeling more expansive. So, I started visualizing myself with a soft, sweet smile of satisfaction and ease, and then I looked to the activities that brought that kind of smile to my face. Bit by bit, the answers came to me. Small steps became significant. Forgotten joys came to the surface. Surprises showed themselves. Once I finished, I looked over the list and marveled at the themes that emerged: loving up and being in my body, being present and loving with the people in my life, sharing and savoring delicious food, creating loving spaces for resting and connecting, being out in natural spaces, marveling at beauty, being transformed by music and art.
One of the things I deeply appreciated about doing this is remembering that the person best suited to bringing more joy and sweetness into your life is YOU. How much joy and sweetness could you experience if you engaged in two life-giving activities each day? I am so pleased to have a ready list of things that I can do to support me, for when I want to give some extra juice to my day/week/month! Moreover, I found that many of them were simple, 2-5 minute activities like expressing affection to my loved ones, brushing my hair after a long day, or making my bed. There were others that would take 20-30 minutes, but could be easily done twice a week, such as sweeping the floor, meditating, reading a good book, taking a mid-afternoon nap. And there were some that would take more time, but I know that I’m willing to do at least two of these a month (e.g. listening to great live music, dancing for joy and play, languorous love making).
Would you be willing to gift yourself with the remembrance that you have the capacity to give yourself life? Would you be willing to do two of these life-giving activities each day? If so, I recommend that you:
Do this with a friend or loved one (wouldn’t it be nice to know what activities give life to your beloveds?);
Connect with an accountability buddy (it helps to reduce some of the Monkey Mind conversation that will inevitably arise);
Use action words (that way you remember that it is the engaging in the activity that fosters the shift); and
Celebrate you!!! (you just took a small, sweet step towards bringing more joy into your daily life—totally worth celebrating!)
Please know that I would LOVE it if you shared your list with me and I would absolutely appreciate learning how this exercise has been for you!
