Gosh I seem to be a bossy old thing, don’t I?
Every week, pontificating from on high about how to be better, without knowing anything about your own personal circumstances. Every week wittering on to make you think, or act or create something new.
You must be exhausted.
Change is exhausting, difficult, a bit like some of those horse-nut size tablets that the doctor occasionally gives you – challenging to swallow.
It’s easier not to, isn’t it?
It’s easier to stay as you are.
It’s easier not to look in the mirror and see ourselves as we really are.
Now, mostly, we are jolly good eggs. We get up, work, look after families and pay our taxes but I’m not talking about those bits, I’m talking about the bits around the edges that stop us driving on.
It’s not dissimilar to last week’s “swallow the frog” theme. We all want to put the not so nice stuff to last and do the easy stuff first, but when did we start this? It’s not how our parents brought us up as I remember every family around our way being the same – get your chores or homework done and then you were allowed to watch TV or go out and play, not before. I suspect it is highly challenging for any parent to keep that routine up these days.
I spoke to a teacher this week about “frogs” and she said “oh yes, I do that all the time, particularly with reports. I do the easy kids first and leave the difficult ones until last as I hate them so much.” Obviously, she doesn’t hate the kids but rather having to phrase reports so that parents get the point without offence and in a way that if the child reads them they don’t feel discouraged. Anyway, we did frogs last week – I digress (as ever).
Getting back to my pontification and me telling you all the time to “do this” and “do that”. Why should you?
Well, here’s the thing and it’s something that I never thought I’d understand.
We’re not getting any younger.
If we don’t do stuff now then our skin will look older than it is (don’t tell me you don’t look at your contemporaries and silently compare your skin with theirs because I do), our bodies will start to stiffen up, our visceral fat levels will not get better – in short, we’re at an age where we’ve done the nice stuff and if we now need to do some work that’s our own fault, only ourselves to blame.
However, what if you just don’t bother? What if you just ignore me and don’t put the work into yourself – what would the result be?
Well, if we don’t take care of our skin now, it will look more lined and aged than it could.
If we don’t eat healthily now then we could be bringing on many different health issues as the relationship between gut and health is increasingly understood.
If we don’t exercise then our risk factors for so many diseases rises, not to mention poorer mental health and skin.
If we don’t become an active part of our own communities we lose an essential part of what it is to be human.
If we’re not generous with our time and spare money to those who need it then the phrase “be kind” has passed us by.
I’m not suggesting nice activities, I’m suggesting getting ourselves to the right weight, exercising more, starting new activities, volunteering and taking an interest in your immediate communities – it’s all work.
However, I know that if you change a few things, if you take up some of my suggestions, adapt them for you, tread your own, outgoing path that while you might hate me now, you’ll love me later.
You’re welcome.
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