Hi, it's me, your sickly bestie. I'm back. If you missed my instagram stories the past few weeks, I've had pneumonia (YAY). It's been a horrible experience, 0 out of 10 stars, definitely don't recommend getting it. And honestly quite rude of September to do me dirty like that, I've been waiting for her to arrive all year.
Every morning my husband would leave the house for the daily walk I used to go on, and as soon as the door closed, I'd turn on the saddest song imaginable so that I could cry straight into my pillow like a raging lunatic.
If I was feeling extra dramatic, I'd Facetime my mom so she could watch me cry while I gave her a full report on all my daily grievances. What is it about being sick that always makes you want your mom?
Much to my surprise, I actually DID start to get better. I wasn't dying after all. And after two weeks I got to do the exhilarating task of taking a full shower without having to sit down.
Yesterday was my first outing out of the house for my son's orientation. I completely missed the step into the auditorium and flew down a ramp in front of a sea of parents. I rolled over and over, in what felt like slow motion might I add, down to the bottom. Bleeding and bruised, I immediately got up, found a seat, and sat down paralyzed with embarrassment. Roughly 50 people asked if I was okay, which honestly is very kind, but somehow equally mortifying. Like, please, can we all just pretend that didn't happen?
Needless to say, I didn't kick off my favorite time of year how I'd liked, but I'm SO EXCITED FOR FALL.
Weekly fun fact you didn't ask for
Well, well, well….
Weekly Community spotlight
I asked you to share your “faking sick” stories. Sharing a few below, I wish I could have shared them all.
Loved this book on happiness
I really enjoyed Oprah's new book that came out this week called Build the Life You Want. I've read books about happiness before, but I thoroughly enjoyed the research and anecdotes in this one. Beyond that, there were so many helpful tools and exercises. So many portions of the book really stuck with me, including this quick excerpt below that I haven't stopped thinking about
Stop judging things around you so much. Judging might seem like pure observation, but it really isn't. It is turning an observation of the outside world inward and making it about you. For example, if you say “this weather is awful,” this is more about your feelings than it is about the weather. Further, you have just assigned a negative mood to something outside your control. Making judgements about the world is normal and necessary, we need to do it in order to make cost benefit decisions. However, many judgements are unhelpful and gratuitous. Do you really need to decide that the song you just heard is stupid? Try instead to observe more around you without regard to your opinion. Start by making more purely observational statements rather than values based ones. Reframe “this coffee is terrible” as “this coffee has a bitter flavor.” At first this is very tricky, because we are just so used to judging everything. Once you get the hang of it, it is a huge relief not to have an opinion on everything….This will keep you calmer and a greater state of inner peace.
It's amazing how many things we do without a second thought. I had never about the way I describe things this way.
*thank you to everyone that always likes and comments on my posts, it helps me immensely, and I'm incredibly grateful.
Other things I loved this week
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