Sweet Memories
At a recent evening on self-care together with parents from our son’s Kindergarten class, we took turns sharing what we enjoy doing for self-care. I was particularly struck by the words of a father who expressed his need for memorable moments as a form of self-care. He’s right – when we can savour a memory or a moment that transcends the ordinary, our spirit is nurtured not just in that moment but for months or years to come.
Hosted in a room known as the Healing Sanctuary in a cob building at the beautiful OUR Ecovillage, the earthen walls and floors, candles, stained glass, and heartfelt sharing were enough to create a beautiful memory of the evening. Add on the evening walk around the ecovillage land and a sauna after our discussion and the evening was absolute perfection.
I feel a bit like an infommercial here, But Wait! It Get’s Better!
As another mother and I prepared to return home our car got stuck in the mud. There were were on a dark and cold night, two mamas sitting in the front seat feeling guilty that we were going to have to ask for help from our fellow parents still basking in the sauna. Imagine our surprise when before we could even get out of the car, into the glare of our headlights appeared our heros -
my husband and another dear friend – both naked but for their boxer briefs.
We howled with laughter, hooted wholehearted approval, hollered our gratitude, clapped with glee, and whistled in appreciation…
While the evening was lovely, the sight of them leaping into the glare of our headlights to the rescue is a memory to be treasured.
Now that’s self-care.
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I love that you’re continually spreading the word about self-care to parents well beyond the early stages of parenthood! This story is great and the mental image makes me laugh – thanks for sharing!
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Sarah Reply:
April 26th, 2010 at 11:54 AM
I love that we has a group of parents within a Kindergarten class can come together to have this discussion. We will be parenting our children together for years to come, and it feels as though this is helping to great a strong & respectful foundation for us to care for our own families, and nurture one another.
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I have found that my ability to live most fully within a moment defines my self-care to the extent that absence from a moment speaks to what I am not doing, as equally as presence speaks of where balance and depth exist.
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That is so awesome and something that you will remember forever.
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