Pampering ourselves......

Snowdrops

 Well, people, I could have bought a fancy laptop or iPad with the money which haemorrhaged out of my wallet when the car came back. Ball thingys, 2 new tyres, velocity gaiter (what??) Lambda thingy (Huh?)..... and here I was thinking the old chariot was perfect. Sigh. BUT it goes and passed in the end, and I am delighted to show off the new ball thingy and velocity gaiter. Well, I would be if I could a) see it and b) knew what they were.

I did ask for a detailed explanation, but the words sort of flew through one ear and out of the other.

Missy's pink ripple. There are 2 pinks in it, but one is pale, and the ends still have to be darned in. Thanks for the excellent idea, Needled Mom - I will be making one for the dolly too!

Sally Clarkson talks today of how everyone needs pampering now and then, how it is the small things which can make a world of difference to our lives, and yes. She is right. And it does not take money or arrangements or planning. It is all about the words or deed on the spur of the moment. I remember once, seeing a frazzled looking woman marching out of the supermarket, and I caught her arm, and she stopped and I grinned and said "I just wanted to tell you how beautiful you look in that colour!" and she transformed before my eyes. She did look beautiful. So why not tell her? Mind you, she may have flattened me, but she didn't. And maybe it changed her day. Surviving supermarket shopping is an ordeal at the best of times. Just a few words, and a moment of my time.

And if I want to have those little moments myself, why not start spreading it around, so people get the idea? Hmmm. I may, of course, become known as that crazy old woman, but who cares. If people smile more, then it is just fine. Doing something nice for someone.

And being pampered also means doing something nice for ourselves. Heaven knows if we wait for someone else to do something, we may wait for ever. This is much harder than I thought it would be. I am supposed to pamper myself, according to my consultants at Bath. At least one day a week, I am supposed to be self-indulgent. And do something special for myself. The "self-indulgent" part is not what they said. It is my interpretation, and therein lies the problem. We are trained to think of and put others first and ourselves last to the extent that anything we do which is simply for our own benefit, creeps or sidles into the "self-indulgent" area of the guilt corner of the brain. You know what I mean? If any of you know how to get rid of that corner, then please pass on any tips.

If I think of having my nails done, for instance, I immediately do the Maths and work out how many meals it could provide, which is why I never have my nails done. If I think of buying a book in a shop which I like, I resist, and come home and see if Amazon is cheaper and then I put it on the wish list where it languishes for a couple of years and then I delete it. If I think of going to a movie or show, I think, hmmmm, I will wait for the DVD or something. Something rarely appears.

I am an idiot.

Actually, making someone smile or happy has an amazing side effect. It changes my day too. I walk away smiling, and the attitude adjustment can change my day. So the best thing we can do is make other people happy, which in turn will make us happy, which has to be part of the pampering thing. As Sally said, it can be a note, an email, flowers, a meal,. help with cleaning, anything. When I went away, I came home to fresh flowers in my lounge, and bread and milk in the kitchen, not to mention a meal ready for me to heat and eat. I have wonderful friends.

So how do you pamper yourselves then?

It is vital that we take care of ourselves, and learn how to do things for ourselves without feeling guilt.

It is the end of February and there are ladybirds in my garden, and a bumble bee is buzzing around the washing.....

Well, the sun is shining and the temperature is nearly 16C, so it is the hottest day of the year so far, which is wonderful. I have washing drying outside, and I have inspected the garden, and the bulbs are on the rise, and the daffodils are about to join the snowdrops blooming. The soil is stirring, and life is coming back.

I love it.

It makes me smile.