Letting Go

Today I am linking up with SITS to talk about how letting go has improved my happiness meter! Welcome, new visitors! I am so grateful to my twitter friends for their support. I've never linked up with SITS before.

I've had to let go of so much lately. I let go of a job last year. It was not at all the dream job I'd pictured, but the paycheck has been missed. I let go of my perfectionist tendencies long ago, but every now and then that monster creeps in. I'm trying to let go of the urge to do things with my typical "all or nothing" mindset. I'm trying to let go of the image of the seventeen-year-old me and my tendency to compare it to my post-baby body. Mostly, though, I'm letting go of negativity.

That's right. I'm blocking my pessimism in hopes of developing a more optimistic point of view. I started in January with posting a facebook update each day, listing at least one thing for which I feel grateful. Examples include bananas, sweet baby kisses, my wonderful husband, hot tea in a cup and saucer and sweatshirts. By forcing myself to think of things that I appreciate, I have managed to successfully block a few negative thoughts every day. It's become kind of a fun game to think of my "one thing."

There was a second-hand, completely unexpected benefit to this. People started doing what I did. People started to comment about my gratitude, saying the posts made them smile. They told me that these little statements made them review their own situations and pause to be thankful, too. I have loved that! Happiness is contagious. Get out there and share some!