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On a recent retreat, two of my friends and I shared a room overlooking my favorite mountain at the edge of a forest.
As if the nature surrounding us wasn’t nurturing enough, our room itself was decadent. We each had two beds (one to sleep in & one to act as a personal ‘closet’); the bathroom floor & toilet seat were heated, and the doorknobs in our room were made of amethyst!
It’s no surprise then, in such an environment & in the company of my beautiful friends, that I was inspired to create a deck of “Self-Love Cards”.
The idea wasn’t entirely my own. My friends had been talking about the importance of self-love, and we were playing with a deck of “Wisdom” cards as we had the conversation. But when the idea arrived, it felt perfectly inspired, and I immediately thought to myself: “What do I need more of in my life that I am consistently pushing off in order to take care of other people, obligations, or life responsibilities?”
For me, the cards read as follows:
*Today feel the embrace of your guides & angels
*Today spend time learning sacred songs
*Today connect with the Metta Prayer
*Today envision Abundance
*Today connect with a vision board meditation
*Today do something special for your physical body
*Today connect with a Kundalini chant, star song, or Hindu chant
I blindly pull one card each day and require myself to spend at least 15 mindful minutes focusing on the self-care suggested by the card. I’ve only been practicing this for a couple weeks now, but I already feel a difference in my life.
For instance, on the day I pulled the Abundance card, I did not simply sit in meditation imagining a life filled with monetary wealth and success. My soul needed something other than that, so I decided to carry the feeling of Abundance with me throughout the entire day. Whenever I came across a situation or experience that felt divisive, I remembered that there is an Abundance of all given qualities in the Universe.
For example, instead of thinking, “Oh no, there is a gorgeous woman in the room I just entered. I feel threatened so I going to judge her and find fault in her to make myself feel better?" I thought instead: "What a beautiful woman! There is an Abundance of beauty in the world for both of us - for all of us! It's so nice to be among such beauty... and to create it myself!"
And, instead of thinking, “Wow. My boyfriend is really pushing me to a limit. I going to say something to him from a place of frustration and point out where he is ‘wrong’." I thought instead, "I have an Abundance of patience & love for this man, and I am going to remain present & mindful to his understanding of the world, even if it can be quite different than my own at times.”
I found that I moved through my day with more peace, gratitude, and lightness of spirit because of my choice to remain feeling Abundant. And that was just one card! The others work their magic in an equally charming fashion.
How about you? What will you put on your Self-Love cards?