Your Daily Brush: The Undeniable Power of Simple Uplifts
What is something in your life that costs you nothing and yet uplifts your spirits?
Dear Friends,
A couple of days ago, as I was out walking getting my exercise steps, I came upon a most unexpected source of delight: a toddler walking toward me with his parents in tow. He held in his hand a device for blowing a stream of bubbles which preceded him as he walked down Clay Street in Chinatown. Just as trumpeters heralded the arrival of royalty in earlier times, the bubbles preceded him by several feet.
As he and I walked past each other, I stopped for a moment and thanked him for sharing his bubbles.
It was a moment full of joy - the kind of powerful joy that makes one forget all their worries even if only for a few moments.
Then when I was out on another exercise walk yesterday, a similar thing happened yet again. Only this time it was an elderly man blowing bubbles over fifty feet from me, and the wind was carrying them several feet downstream.
And again, here was another moment of unexpected joy that I experienced as a gift from the elderly man.
Why am I rambling on about blowing bubbles?
Because they speak to the power of simple, unexpected uplifts and how they can boost our emotional health.
You see, mental hygiene is not just about reducing stress. It is also about awakening to the smallest of positive events in your life, because this is how you can nourish your psyche and soul.
Even in difficult life moments, it is possible to carve out a moment to acknowledge something that is either going right or something or someone who makes a positive difference in your life.
It can be a brief moment of connection with another human being - like a shared smile and hello with someone in the elevator. Or it can be a glimpse of a beautiful color. Or it can be the feel of the wind against your face. Or as I experienced on Clay Street, it can entail briefly pausing to say hello to a small child and his or her parents.
Rx: Be open to small uplifts in your daily life and let them sink into your awareness and enrich your mind. This is a skill that lies within each person and is something you can strengthen through practice.
No, noticing bubbles or the sunlight or the colors of flowers does not remove the difficulties of life. What it does do is help remind one of the positives even when life feels like a sea of negatives. This kind of momentary uplift can offer a respite from the challenges of life.
This is mental hygiene in action! It’s as simple as consciously stopping to appreciate things, events and people around you and acknowledging their power as uplifts for your mind and soul.
To your health!
