I was so scared to think of any negative thoughts, or if something difficult happened to me, I would blame it on myself, like I caused it.
I stopped following some spiritual videos or manifesting techniques as it's like a self-harm habit for me. Anything happens, instead of keeping the lighthearted response of "Oh well..." i was frantically searching which mindspace caused this occasion to happen.
Also, while I noticed that the books/videos were produced in a good spirit to motivate people to "visualise, take action, and let go", I'm prone to rumination. I sought tips n tricks for "manifesting to arrive sooner", putting me into a stress.
I took a leisurely, slower approach now. My ego wants my prayers to be answered fast, but there's only so much I can do daily without burning myself out. Indeed, our minds are like unbridled horses.
Oh I completely relate, Sekar. It can be really empowering until it's not, and then it can be super detrimental to our mental health. I think so much of life is about letting go and trusting, not always having to find the answers ourselves. Thank you for this comment, sending you all my love!
Hunter, I'm so glad you are finding your way out of the heaviness that has been on you.
Lovely post on refocusing life. I needed to hear this today. A great journal prompt. In fact this is probably a great way to start each journal entry, a small romanticized observation. Thank you! 😊
Thank you, Jess. I'm definitely in that "I'm choosing this" space instead of feeling it naturally, but doing my best. Oh I love the idea of starting your journal entries with a romanticized moment! Let me know how it goes :) Thank you for your support always!
A beautiful read. I love the idea of keeping notes of romantic moments and celebrating the small act of noticing. I wrote a post recently about romanticising your life through food and it's so lovely to hear how others are making life that little more romantic. x
Oh man. Thank you for this. I’ve been trying to cultivate contentment in my life for a few months now. Not thinking about what if’s, what’s gone wrong, or what I’m missing (and missing out on). My goal has been to be present, and happy with my life and what I have. But reframing it as “romanticizing my life” feels more actionable somehow. It’s a call to practice gratitude with the small, meaningful moments that light up our day. And I love that.
I love that romanticizing your life spoke to you, Jessica. Finding contentment is soo important, but adding joy & zest to life by romanticizing it makes it even more exciting! Sending love!
I love the invitation to start a romantic moments note on our phone because it’s so true how easy it is to focus on the bad. And there is so many beautiful moments happening all around us everyday!
It definitely feels easier to focus on the bad, I wonder why? It must be addicting to our brains in some way. Love that you're going to start the romantic moments in your notes! It's been really helpful for me with reframing my thoughts.
I love this so much! One of my words of the year for 2024 (I have three… I couldn’t choose just one this time!) is beauty, because in this season of early motherhood (my little one is 9 months), I really want to chase and embrace beauty in everyday life. I think this resonates so much with the concept of romanticising everyday life. I’ve done little things, like painting my nails, having a beautiful coffee mug, washing my hair so I can wear it down (!!), putting on earrings when the little one sleeps… and I feel so much better for it. Thank you for reminding me to look for romance in the small moments: I so needed it!
I love that, Holly! Beauty is such a good word, especially when you're still so freshly postpartum. I love all the beautiful things you do for yourself, and it really is all about the small moments! My word for 2024 is embodiment so I'm hoping to lean into that more in the coming months.
A lovely timely reminder for me. I definitely relate to this idea that it's easier to look for the bad, I have to make a conscious effort to focus on the small, joyous moments in my life. I have a note on my phone with similar things but I haven't actually looked at it in months/ updated it, taking this as my cue to start!
I always joked I was a glass-half-empty kind of kid, so it's definitely deliberate for me to look for joy too. It makes such a huge difference, doesn't it? Ooh I'd love to know what you find on your notes! It's always so interesting when I see something I've written a while back and forgot about.
This is so beautifully written. I love the idea of noting it all down. I like to dwell on the joyful things in life too, otherwise it would all be a bit too bland and hard! ⭐️
I love, love, love this. The idea of romanticising your life is beautiful. I like to think of having a romance with ideas, with Self, with all of life. It makes such a difference. 💜
I’m so happy I landed on this piece this evening, Hunter! It’s just what I needed to read. I’ve made a list from the last few days in my notes app. There’s so many! Thank you 😘 x
Life is happening right now and no matter how much we try, 'today' will be the only day we see.
So what's more important, taking in and cherishing what we see or waiting for a tomorrow, which will be a 'day' too and you might just let it pass thinking and waiting for something better.
Living is the most important task we should never forget
Hunter, I resonate with this piece:
I was so scared to think of any negative thoughts, or if something difficult happened to me, I would blame it on myself, like I caused it.
I stopped following some spiritual videos or manifesting techniques as it's like a self-harm habit for me. Anything happens, instead of keeping the lighthearted response of "Oh well..." i was frantically searching which mindspace caused this occasion to happen.
Also, while I noticed that the books/videos were produced in a good spirit to motivate people to "visualise, take action, and let go", I'm prone to rumination. I sought tips n tricks for "manifesting to arrive sooner", putting me into a stress.
I took a leisurely, slower approach now. My ego wants my prayers to be answered fast, but there's only so much I can do daily without burning myself out. Indeed, our minds are like unbridled horses.
Oh I completely relate, Sekar. It can be really empowering until it's not, and then it can be super detrimental to our mental health. I think so much of life is about letting go and trusting, not always having to find the answers ourselves. Thank you for this comment, sending you all my love!
Thank you for this beautiful reminder. It’s perfectly timed, both for me personally but also as spring starts to make its way onto stage.
So glad it was a timed share for you, Sara!
Beautifully put!
Thank you!
Hunter, I'm so glad you are finding your way out of the heaviness that has been on you.
Lovely post on refocusing life. I needed to hear this today. A great journal prompt. In fact this is probably a great way to start each journal entry, a small romanticized observation. Thank you! 😊
Thank you, Jess. I'm definitely in that "I'm choosing this" space instead of feeling it naturally, but doing my best. Oh I love the idea of starting your journal entries with a romanticized moment! Let me know how it goes :) Thank you for your support always!
A beautiful read. I love the idea of keeping notes of romantic moments and celebrating the small act of noticing. I wrote a post recently about romanticising your life through food and it's so lovely to hear how others are making life that little more romantic. x
Ooh I'll have to go read your post, Aimée! I love that. Life's too short to not be romantic & magical, isn't it?
Oh man. Thank you for this. I’ve been trying to cultivate contentment in my life for a few months now. Not thinking about what if’s, what’s gone wrong, or what I’m missing (and missing out on). My goal has been to be present, and happy with my life and what I have. But reframing it as “romanticizing my life” feels more actionable somehow. It’s a call to practice gratitude with the small, meaningful moments that light up our day. And I love that.
I love that romanticizing your life spoke to you, Jessica. Finding contentment is soo important, but adding joy & zest to life by romanticizing it makes it even more exciting! Sending love!
I love the invitation to start a romantic moments note on our phone because it’s so true how easy it is to focus on the bad. And there is so many beautiful moments happening all around us everyday!
It definitely feels easier to focus on the bad, I wonder why? It must be addicting to our brains in some way. Love that you're going to start the romantic moments in your notes! It's been really helpful for me with reframing my thoughts.
I love this so much! One of my words of the year for 2024 (I have three… I couldn’t choose just one this time!) is beauty, because in this season of early motherhood (my little one is 9 months), I really want to chase and embrace beauty in everyday life. I think this resonates so much with the concept of romanticising everyday life. I’ve done little things, like painting my nails, having a beautiful coffee mug, washing my hair so I can wear it down (!!), putting on earrings when the little one sleeps… and I feel so much better for it. Thank you for reminding me to look for romance in the small moments: I so needed it!
I love that, Holly! Beauty is such a good word, especially when you're still so freshly postpartum. I love all the beautiful things you do for yourself, and it really is all about the small moments! My word for 2024 is embodiment so I'm hoping to lean into that more in the coming months.
Ooh I’ve not heard of embodiment as a word of the year before; I’d love to know some of the ways you’re leaning into that 🥰
A lovely timely reminder for me. I definitely relate to this idea that it's easier to look for the bad, I have to make a conscious effort to focus on the small, joyous moments in my life. I have a note on my phone with similar things but I haven't actually looked at it in months/ updated it, taking this as my cue to start!
I always joked I was a glass-half-empty kind of kid, so it's definitely deliberate for me to look for joy too. It makes such a huge difference, doesn't it? Ooh I'd love to know what you find on your notes! It's always so interesting when I see something I've written a while back and forgot about.
This is so beautifully written. I love the idea of noting it all down. I like to dwell on the joyful things in life too, otherwise it would all be a bit too bland and hard! ⭐️
Thank you so much, Kate. It definitely would be a hard and boring life!
I love, love, love this. The idea of romanticising your life is beautiful. I like to think of having a romance with ideas, with Self, with all of life. It makes such a difference. 💜
Great piece, it's beautifully written and I love how you phrased it. I will not forget to romanticized my life every day :)
I’m so happy I landed on this piece this evening, Hunter! It’s just what I needed to read. I’ve made a list from the last few days in my notes app. There’s so many! Thank you 😘 x
Beautiful beautiful and beautiful!
This is exactly what I feel.
Everything is true.
Thank you for saying it all so beautifully!!
Life is happening right now and no matter how much we try, 'today' will be the only day we see.
So what's more important, taking in and cherishing what we see or waiting for a tomorrow, which will be a 'day' too and you might just let it pass thinking and waiting for something better.
Living is the most important task we should never forget
Because if we are not living, what else matters?
You're right. Things can be hard but they don't have to be our sole focus. Loved reading this piece. Thank you for sharing.
I love those tiny magical moment in our days. Such a beautiful reminder to keep actively looking for them 💛