A Gift for Yourself

I visited a friend a while back who'd gone out of the way to put daily duties aside and make time for me. When we talked about our visit at a later date, my buddy kept telling me that what I saw was not the reality. That I got the best my friend had to offer.

That puzzled me for days. Why, I wondered, would my friend give the best to me?

Why not give the best you have to offer to yourself? Your family? Those you do business with daily?

I see the same in my daughters. They each have their own room (or apartment), and their own bathroom. They have complete say about what they want their space to look like, except, perhaps, the wall color. They each choose to be messy -- clothes on the floor, waste basket overflowing, books and papers all over the place, hair products that show up in the oddest locations.

It's not the example they were given. That is not how I choose to keep my space, my bedroom or the rest of the house -- with the exception, perhaps, of my studio that has craft and needlework projects all over the place. But even there, the tabletops and desktops have clear spaces so I can work.

So why choose to give yourself less than your best? No one is stopping you. Your time is your own to use as you see fit. You deserve to live a peaceful life ... at least within your own skin and your own abode. You simply need to decide to give yourself that gift, the gift of your best self.