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Wednesday 8 February 2012

How To Stay Refreshed Through Stressful Everydays


From the last post and from the comments of one or two it’s quite obvious how we want to be pampered and rest from things that stress us. What’s stress? A dictionary meaning could be a mental, physical or emotional strain caused by anxiety or overwork. Though its meaning may not be less stereotyped as in this definition there are two kinds of stress as I’ve learned from my discipline. They are Eustress and Distress. In simple words Eustress is caused by positive events or circumstances, and Distress is vice versa. For example, you are preparing for your wedding happening in some months, it’s a good thing to have your wedding but it comes with some strain, in fact a lot if you don’t slow your roll. Or you…sorry! Someone… gets laid off their job last week, by popular opinion it’s a bad thing and would come with some stress too.  I’ve learnt that our day to day living result from the major events (which are short termed) that have happened to our lives. You’re wondering I said the major events in our lives are short termed; let me explain using this simple analogy I learnt too. If you throw a sizable stone into a pond or lake or some stable body of water, the stone goes right down to the bottom and is no more seen on the surface but it leaves ripples on the surface of the water to linger a little longer than it has left the water surface. Try it if you still don’t get it. So for instance, you finally had your first child, the process and moment of delivery are over usually in two days then, you and your spouse face an on the job training for childcare, you don’t want me to go into details. If something tragic happens like a natural disaster or someone’s house got engulfed in fire, the things that make up the living activities of the survivors afterwards are ripples of such bad occurrences. I hope I’m not scaring you? I’m just trying to explain the cause of the activities that fill up our day generally. So if you have been through university, have served, gotten a job, gotten married and have one or two children who have started elementary education you should know how your day would go. Stressful! Right? After beating around the bush a little, today’s post is supposed to teach you ‘How to stay refreshed in hectic day to day living.’ The things I’d be telling you are reminders of what you may already know, simple tips you could follow and are beneficial habits if you cultivate them. Even if you just lazy at home every day, you need them to keep you refreshed, your days defined, your mind focused and receptive of great ideas and for making your day count. So here it goes:
1.       Plan Your Day: Give a time frame to the activities that would make your day including the regulars and non regulars. Make a to do list of the things you want done at the end of the day, do not include a lot of things in your to do list so as to make it realistic and realizable. Get a diary or notebook to do this preferably at night before you sleep then review it in the morning  as you start your day.
2.       Fellowship With God: This is the best way to get a fulfilled day started, a communion with the one who created it. Yeah! Tell me one more time that you don’t have time. I say no one has time for anything we can only create time for anything we want to. If you can’t give an account that no second in our 24hrs was wasted, it points to the fact that we determine what we use our time for.  The place of your fellowship should be at the altar of your heart don’t try to impress God with actions, I’m saying seek God with a sincere heart in prayer and meditation both in His Word, it gives your day great definition and reminds you to rise early.
3.       Work Out: A little exercise or rounds of it would do you no harm. It doesn’t even have to be outside your room. A comfortable levelled space enough for aerobics and any exercise to cause you to sweat and get your heart pumping. It helps circulation in your whole system throughout the day.
4.       Drink Water: The good works of water in your system can’t be over emphasized. You don’t have to drink an amount that would make you feel uncomfortable if you drink it at once, you could take little by little but make sure your system is hydrated through the day.
5.       Respond Don’t React: Especially when you reach the peak of your day, when you’re putting all your energy into what you’re busy with interruptions from situations or people around may cause you to be irritated, chose your answers to such interruptions by reasoning before you answer.
6.       Be Meek And Have A Laugh: Be teachable, a lot of lessons are been taught by our everyday living but we are too busy reacting to them and letting them slip through our fingers. When the going gets tough the wise tough get going by placing the going on the lighter mood making it easier to carry. That situation is almost reaching an edge that can cause a brawl, let down your ego just this once and place things on a lighter mood, laugh in a way the other party doesn’t feel spited, save the situation and make or keep a friend.
7.       Kick Back: When you’re done with the dinner dishes, unwind, lounge, have a dessert you like, report the day’s event in a diary, tuck the kids in, take a shower, brush your teeth, plan the next day, pray, read something pleasant to work your imagination, romance your spouse if you’re married and make sure you sleep for at least four hours.
With these few points of mine I hope I’ve been able to confuse and not to confuse you that it is better to be lazy than to be busy.  Catcha Later.

Monday 6 February 2012

Top 5 things to make the week tick.

Mondays for the most of is the beginning of the week because work or school resumes on Monday. Contrary to that today's a public holiday id-el Maulud if I'm right. So the week doesn't start the usual way for most of you, but for me what do you think it would be? Another bout of boring and stressful activities. I used to have an irrational belief that Mondays determined how the rest of the week would turn out, but no more. I had my Monday not hectic and not lazy, I did a bunch of useful things. The thing is I'm a dork when it comes to having fun and I need a change. I know a lot of you guys know how to work hard and play harder (I'm not referring to watching movies for hours that's outright boring). If I was to write a list of the top five activities in my week it would go like this.
1. House chores.
2. Help out with mummy's business.
3. Make Dinner.
4. Turn off the generator before going to bed.
5. Teach at the Teen's Church on Sunday.
That's it! 1-4 take place everyday without fail except when I'm sulking, then Sunday has it on number five.
Is it just me or having 'me time' or fun isn't possible or are you a dork just like me? I want a change of events. What are the things or events that could make this week great for you? Or what things do you do to make your week tick. Or are you like me, used to stereotyped boring and exhausting events in your week? You could fantasize about the thing that would make this week tick, it may work as some sort of therapy for stress, just relax and fantasize. I'm talking about a wish list, mine would go:
1. Eat ice cream everyday.
2. Have someone read me to sleep every night.
3. Wake early enough to work out.
4. Meet a really great guy whose interested...
5. Go for a swim on Saturday (I'm not telling you I don't know how to swim yet)

Would this list make a week tick? Or Could you pimp my week?

Sunday 5 February 2012

Do you know what you carry?


I wrote this two weeks ago

I would have come with this to you like some motivational talk but too bad I don’t like motivational talk because I feel they miss the speck of the reality of life, take you to an imaginary world with happy endings, leave with virtually non applicable theories and philosophies that can make a man who is not careful with them look like a fool and sound like a noisy lousy cymbal (I’ve seen some myself).
I teach at the teen class in my church (don’t question my justification to do so). I’m resuming fully this coming Sunday after I had been away for close to six months in school for my final semester, so last Sunday I went there towards the end of service to check on them and see where I’d be fitting in when I resume fully. Some of them shared excited glances at each other and me, learning of my return. While some of them greeted me, some others who clearly knew me put up an attitude that they didn’t give a hoot about who I was. I tried not to be moved, most of them are bigger than I am in size but I’m still their teacher. Their service ended a little before the adult church to accommodate post meetings such as choir rehearsals. A little boy was heading the choir and I had a short conversation with him after the rest had dispersed after the meeting. I found that he was just twelve and not yet a teen. “What are you doing here you’re not yet 13?” I teased
“I may be small but I know what I carry” He replied me with more than words from his lips but from a conviction he lived with. “hmmmnn!” I absorbed what he said knowing what he meant and glad that he did. I was going to use this young leader as an example to the rest not for comparism, but for a challenge for them to realize they are responsible for what becomes of them by the stands they take. They have Christ in them and have overcome the world by the greater one which is in them. “Do they know what they carry?!”