Come What May

I spend a lot of time in my head.

I really *really* like it there, maybe a little too much. I’ve been told that I’m locked into the bird's eye view which is why I find the mundane close-up so disorienting. 

It is remarkably difficult for me to do the day-to-day things that other people seem to find so easy like...changing an air conditioner filter or remembering that sheets and towels need to be washed even though they aren’t in a hamper - ok if I’m being honest, on the floor. 

Don’t even get me started on my solution to dishes that didn’t go in the dishwasher immediately and became too difficult to figure out how to clean. I promise you, it’ll make you mental.

How do I know this?

Because literally anyone who I’ve explained it to has gasped in horror.

You don’t believe me? I mean I know I’m crazy talented in a lot of areas but trust when I say that doesn’t translate to crazy talented in ALL of the areas. 

Alrighty. My solution is to throw it away and contribute to the horrific amount of trash collecting in landfills. It’s that or I’ll lose my mind.

If it helps any, I now have systems in place to prevent that sort of thing from happening - which is what I’m here to talk about today actually.

It’s Hard to Find a Way Back

I find I often feel disconnected from other people and the world in general. Even those people I feel close to or the things in the world I care about and it can be hard to find my way back to the things that keep me connected to the things that matter to me - including my short-term and long-term goals.

That is unless I have a plan.

I spoke in a recent episode about the power of rituals and today I want to talk specifically about morning rituals.

These are the things that you do every single morning before you start doing all of the things that get thrown at you as a parent, employee, entrepreneur, or any other variety of busy human.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I’ll tell you that I get up between 4:30 and 6 am depending on the day but I rarely wake up later than 5:30. I know without any kind of doubt that many of you will be tempted to stop listening because it seems too early.

Don’t worry, you don’t need to get up and watch the sunrise with me.

My definition of morning and your definition of morning can be hours apart. The idea here is to anchor the beginning of your day with things that set you up for success and help you feel more connected to your life.

• Wake up - yes I put this on my list because it means I have a win as soon as it happens. Don’t be judgy 
• Make breakfast - I never use to make or eat breakfast and then I’d eat but it would be something a frat boy would have and now I make an actual breakfast just for me. Maybe you’re one of those people who can just eat when you’re hungry or later in the morning but for me, I’ll forget until my day slows down which is usually sometime about 12 hours after I wake up so making this a priority is super important. 
• Eat breakfast - Yes, eating is on my list because making but not having time to eat and enjoy it is just super frustrating.
• Shower - This is on my list because I had to train myself to wait until after I made breakfast. I found when it was at the top of my list I wanted to stay in bed longer which gave me less time for all the other things.
• Make Bed - I have this stacked after the shower because it’s a convenient time and I’m already on a roll and I *love* the way my bedroom feels when the bed is made and it’s simply not something I’d ever do if it wasn’t sandwiched in between other things.
• Get Dressed/Makeup - Yes, I’d totally put clothes on even if it wasn’t part of my morning ritual but would I really take the time to put thought into it or add makeup and time to make my hair do nifty curl things? Nope - and do you know how I know this? Because I never did before. I’d get out of the shower, grab clothes, let my hair air dry, and just put on moisturizer. I looked acceptable but my Libra rising has a way better day if I look better than acceptable. 
• Start laundry of the day - In my calendar this is actually specified by what type of laundry on specific days. For example, I never do laundry on Mondays - because NO. 
• Review Planner - I like to look at what I have planned for the day so I have my plan of attack firmly in mind before I talk to anyone else.
• Pull Tarot Card for the Day - There aren’t a lot of people I’m interested in talking to on a daily basis, but my cards are a different story. I have a dozen decks but the ones that I have the best conversations with are the Light Seers Tarot and the Vice Versa Tarot. I can review them later if anyone wants to email me a request ;) 
• Journal - This one is actually super important and really hard for me to prioritize because it seems so self-indulgent but I decided a few years ago that the best way to get to know myself better was to talk to myself more than I talk to anyone else. You’d think the time I spend talking to myself in my head would count, but it’s oddly not as effective as the journaling process. I stopped talking to my journal on more than one occasion because I didn’t like what I was finding out about myself or my choices, but that’s ultimately why I do it. To be fair, I’ve also stopped talking to my cards for short periods for similar reasons. 

Alrighty. That was my morning routine - yes, every single morning because I don’t sleep in on weekends. It’s not my recommendation for you specifically, it’s just what *I* do and my rationale for including all of the things.

The more I refine it and the better I stick to it, the better my days go. When I get sidetracked and play Mario Kart, check my email, get lost on Instagram, or text a friend in the morning and skip something, my day always feels a little sideways and I end up feeling disconnected.

I know several people who include meditation, yoga, exercise, or a walk outside in their morning rituals and I think that’s amazing. I’m still trying to remember to be in my body and not my head so I haven’t added any super physical things to my practice yet.

Music Time

The song for this week is Tomorrow, Jennifer Nettles’ version.

From the song:

The sun'll come out tomorrow

Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow

There'll be sun

Just thinkin' about tomorrow

Clears away the cobwebs and the sorrow

'Til there's none

When I'm stuck with a day that's gray and lonely

I just stick out my chin and grin, and say, oh

The sun'll come out tomorrow

So you gotta hang on 'til tomorrow

Come what may

Tomorrow, tomorrow

I love ya tomorrow

You're always a day away

So tell me... 

If you don’t have any type of ritual for greeting and preparing for your day, what’s one thing you would love to do every single morning before you have to engage with the rest of the world? Once you’ve done it for a few weeks consistently what would be the next thing you’d love to add? What is your why for each thing you can come up with?

Spend time with these questions and see what comes up. If you’re feeling frisky, hit me up on Instagram and share your answers with me.

Until next time, my wish for you is that thinking about tomorrow clears out the cobwebs and the sorrow, even on the grayest of todays.

Podcast Theme Music

License:  Rustic Ballad by Alexander Nakarada