A
few years ago, when the phrase “YOU CAN DO IT” was used by Nike and repeated by
lots of others, I decided to adopt it for my own. I know, a mantra is supposed
to be “OHM” and to be chanted in the Lotus position. I cannot achieve that
asana, haven’t been able to since my knee surgery several years ago. I still do
it, but a modified version. However, my own personal Yoga session just involves
deep breathing and an attempt at mind-clearing, no mantra.
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| A jade Buddha my husband brought home from Korea |
So
where did I use YOU CAN DO IT? At the end of each journal entry. I call them my
Daily Pages, which I got from…somewhere. I do them M-F so I don’t feel like I
have to write them every day. It’s my log book, part diary, part what I’ve
accomplished in the last day (or weekend), and what I hope to get done that day.
It’s the first thing I do in my work day, so the exhortation at the end of my
writing serves to propel me into and through the day.
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| Laughing Buddha also from Korea (he squeaks when you push his belly) |
This
mantra served me well when I went through a period where I thought I might not
be able to do it. During my husband’s decline and after his death, it helped to
tell myself that every day.
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| Prayer stick my son and daughter-in-law left for my husband in Thailand |
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| The temple in Thailand |
Before that, I used
things like PERSIST and ONWARD. I started YCDI in 2010, actually, and kept it
for a long time. Intermittently I used DON’T QUIT NOW, YOU'RE ON THE WAY, GOING
GOOD, LET'S GO! In 2014, I used OFF TO THE RACES, since that was the Year of
the Horse. I used some others for the Chinese years, coming back to YCDI.
In
2019 I used these two:
KEEP GOING. DO NOT STOP. DO NOT
HURRY.
BREATHE.
REST, RECOVER, REFLECT
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| Full moon in May |
This year
I’m using:
TAKE CARE
OF YOURSELF
And this
one from, which my friend Daryl Wood Gerber tells me a lot:
BREATHE
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| My tea in a cup from a trip to see my cousin in Seattle |
I know,
that’s not really what a mantra is, but it’s mine and I call it that.
What do
you do to encourage yourself? To get you through the day?
All photos are mine.
