A day in my social-distancing life
...fixing my mind on blessings
You will find that a day in my social-distancing life is not one bit glamorous. My family is all over the world but I have none in Ireland. Although I must say I have a great support network and friends who have become family. So I am not isolated at all. And thanks to technology I talk to my family regularly. Being that I am an artist/entrepreneur who works part time for someone else, my day is rather interesting. Let's discover why, in a day in my social-distancing life.
A day in my social-distancing life is filled with...
Learning
Image from YouTube.com 
Image from lifestylebymo.com 
Image from Amazon India website
My mate and I were singing humourously today actually that, all we do is learn learn learn no matter what, to the tune of DJ Khalid's All I do is win. Honestly, I spend most of my days reading books, listening to books, reading the bible and watching YouTube videos. I mostly watch TED talks, psychology channels and business channels on YouTube. On that note, I would like to share a little bit on what I have been learning.
The book I am currently reading is...
Image from the sweetandsassybookcritic.com
The gifts of imperfection: let go of who you think you are supposed to be and embrace who you are by Brene Brown. There is an epic review on the book over at The Sweet and Sassy Book Critic's website which you can find here https://thesweetandsassybookcritic.com/an-analysis-of-the-gifts-of-imperfection-by-brene-brown/. Check it out after you finish reading my blog though haha. The quote below summarises my biggest take away atm (I am still reading the book).
Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we're supposed to be and embracing who we are.
Brene Brown in The Gifts of Imperfection
When you hit 25 and you suddenly realise that you have been hiding yourself... that's a whole different ball game. But the first step to recovery or solving a problem is to admit that you have a problem. Which is what a did last year. And quite interestingly, the author and I share something way too specific to be a coincidence. Brene had a breakdown/spiritual awakening in 2007 which led her to the work that she is doing. One of those being the book itself. Well, in 2019 I had a breakdown as well which turned out to be a spiritual awakening. Or in more accurate words to my situation, it led me to accepting Christ's invitation to walk with him again.
So I have been learning how to heal and walk in health. How to be true to myself but not selfish. And most importantly, how to love myself so I can love others. When I tell you that the past year has been a whirlwind of learning, excitement and growth, I kid you not.
Being grateful
The more grateful I am, the more beauty I see.
Mary Davis
Brene writes that 'gratitude without practice is almost like faith without works - it is not alive'. I have a gratitude practice not just an attitude. I write down what I am grateful for each morning. One part of this is acknowledging what I already have and the other part is thanking God for what he has already given me but I am yet to receive physically. Here are the tools that I use for my daily gratitude practice.
Presently
This app is very simple and straightforward. What you see in the photo is the complete user interface. It's simplicity is what makes it awesome. You can set it up so you get daily reminders to write down what you are grateful for. You also get daily quotes at the bottom of the screen that teach you more about gratitude. What's even more awesome is that every time you go in and out of your notes, the quotes change. And there are no adverts or any of that marketing nonsense. That statement is super ironic cos I studied marketing at a masters level (lol). So in a nutshell, download Presently.
Vision Board
I love this app because it helps me remain focused on what I want to achieve through out my lifetime. And it's well rounded with topics like business, health, love, gratitude and self-esteem in the affirmations category. This is maybe a bit like Jon and Misty Butcher's Lifebook but in an app version. The user interface is super clean, sleek and simple. Although there are pop up ads, they are not annoying. And to be frank, I am shocked that there aren't more because this app is class. My favourite section is the vision board bit. Where you get to download photos and write down a goal. I thank God daily for my goals, because I know He is able to come through for me.
Other tools
Obviously again the bible app is quite important and I write notes on there. Additionally though, I have a journal that I write in daily. I write about my emotions so I can process better. Most of my entries lately are thanksgiving. I have noticed that I have been entitled and not very appreciative. So I am making up for it. Every moment I remember to, I say 'Thank you Lord, Thank you Jesus'. If you think there is nothing to be thankful for, I dare you to just be grateful that you are alive and your body is doing it's best to give you a quality life.
Establishing and keeping routines
If you read my previous post on 13 habits that have changed my life drastically you know that lately I am all about routines. If you haven't, you can find that post here https://www.lorraine-moalosi.com/13-habits-thatve-changed-my-life-drastically/. Routines are very important because they actually help you use your best resource well - time. It's so easy to get caught up in waiting for the pandemic to end. And in the process, lose your sense of time. Taking for-granted how blessed you are to be alive. So establish routines and keep them. These help you stay present and optimistic. Trust me, you will thank yourself later. And maybe me in the process.
But what does a day in my social-distancing life actually look like?
Here's what a day in my social-distancing life looks like
- 6 AM - WAKE UP TIME
I set my alarm for ^ am. Some days I wake up earlier. The earliest I have ever woken up (and stayed awake was probably 5:30). The latest I have ever woken up is 6:30.
The highlight of my day is...
- 6 AM TO 7:30 AM - ME AND JESUS TIME
I initially wanted to keep this to an hour but it's just too good to resist. This is when I feel most at peace, connected, loved, hopeful, grateful and grounded. On other days when I am working, I do have to keep to an hour unfortunately. The first thing I do when I wake up is fill out my gratitude journal on Presently. For me, this is done in prayer. So as I fill it out, I will say, thank you Jesus for... Then this is followed by thanking God for things I am yet to receive but He has promised to give me. I do this on the app Vision Board. Again, this is done in prayer.
Thereafter, the order of what I do varies but the activities are always the same. I read the bible, meditate on scripture, listen to whatever song is on my heart and pray. But I must say listening to worship is getting increasingly harder because I miss the real thing. I miss singing with others and worshipping together together not apart. Remembering to be grateful, I always thank Him that I will get the opportunity to do this again soon.
- 7:30 to 8:30 AM - WORKOUT TIME OR DAY DREAMING
I don't work out for a full hour folks. I don't have that kind of stamina atm. And if I did work out for that long, it would be because I take long breaks in between exercises. When I am not working out,I am either day dreaming about my future. Or I extend my gratitude time, for my past and present.
Breakfast and the rest of the morning
I have my breakfast straight after my workout, bearing in mind the preparation time. And guess what I ALWAYS have! Porridge! I have a mini morning routine on my YouTube channel. Find it here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbbVWeVc0gM.
Then followed by taking supplements. Thereafter, I shower and start working on my projects. I won't go into details about what those are in this post but you will find out when the time is right. Now I wish I could say I am super concentrated but I am finding that the procrastination is really strong.
In the above photos, I was meant to be doing something or another above but ended up taking photos instead.
The rest of the day
I am very good with my mornings. I do the same thing every morning so it's no wonder I am good at it. The rest of the day however is a work in progress. But I am very proud of the progress I have been making nonetheless. I am honestly doing more now towards achieving my goals than I ever did in the past. My evenings are super decent too. Evenings are reserved for connecting with friends and winding down, So between 8 pm and 9:30 pm, I am on the phone with friends. Although sometimes during the day I can spend about 5-7 hrs talking to my sister on the phone. But there is no judgement, I miss her.
- 21:30 - BED TIME
I am usually in bed with the lights off at 21:30. Between 21:00 and 21:30, I normally have my bedside lamp on, not my main one. And a scented candle lit. The aroma helps me relax and obviously the dim lights stimulate the production of melatonin. So by the time I switch the lights off, I am normally off to dream land within 15 minutes.
The moral of the story
This era is uncharted territory. So be kind to yourself if you are not being super productive as my friend Naomi reminded me a week ago. But more importantly change your perspective on what productivity means. Honestly I think I am winning because I have gotten more done recently than I have in the months leading up to this. Identify your strengths and give yourself props for nailing those. Identify your weakness but don't over-identify with them. Acknowledge them and work on them but don't judge yourself on them.
Another important take away, may this time remind you never to take anything for-granted ever again. I wish I could meet up with friends for coffee, go dancing, host friends for food, drinks and games. But I never did when I had the opportunity. So instead of thinking about all the things I could be doing, which I never did to start with, I focus on the present. What can I do now to make the most of my precious time? That's the question I am leaving you with.
Get in touch and let me know what you have decided to do to make the most of your time now. Have a blessed week. And remember to stay grateful.
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