Sunday, November 4, 2012

S.H.A.P.E.

I'm reading a nice little book called "The 50 Best Ways to Simplify Your Life". It has some good ideas. In the Spirit section there's a chapter that encourages you to create an acronym all for yourself; one that represents exactly what you want your life's focus to be. For example, one of the people mentioned in the book, Dave, has C.R.E.W.  written on the corner of his planner. CREW stands for Create, Read, Exercise, Write. Every night he underlines the letters representing what he accomplished that day. He notes that when he feels stale and depressed, it's usually days that he hasn't been able to underline his acronym letters.

So I got busy and created my own acronym:

S: Spirit (spending time in prayer, meditation, Bible study, worship--it could be as simple as revelling in the beauty of autumn and being thankful to God for his creation)
H: Heart (loving those around me...and showing it in tangible ways.)
A: Art (this one's for my photography...taking pics, learning about photography, or just       
     enjoying others' artwork.)
P: Pen (writing.)
E: Exercise and Eating right.

Now every evening when I retire, I spend a moment reflecting on SHAPE. Was I able to accomplish the things I want? Did I notice God in my everyday? Did I demonstrate love today to my family, friends, or students? Was I able to eke out a little time for art and pen?
What did I eat today--was it healthy and nourishing? And finally, did I at least find time to go for a walk with my buddy Baron?

These goals aren't earth-shattering; and  may not be yours, but to me, if I am true to them, I think I will have lived well on this earth.

If you had a personal acronym, what would it be?

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3 comments:

I love to read your comments...write on!