I was feeling homesick the past two days.

I was sad. I cried. And it is ok.

It is normal to feel sad. We are human beings capable of having different emotions. Besides, how can you appreciate happiness if you don’t know the feeling of sadness.

Being sad can also be a privelege. I was priveleged to be sad because I was homesick. It was not because my family do not have food the next day nor because I lost a child in a war. It was a privelege to acknowledge that I am sad because I miss home.

It’s a dangerous thing – to be sad and not able to acknowledge it. In this journey of building good habits we may feel sadness as we transition in becoming a better person because we are moving out of our comfort zone. Embrace it. See the beauty in it.

Do you know yourself?

Who else are guilty of buying stuff to feel good after getting super stressed or sad?

They call it retail therapy. A small dose of instant happiness from getting something you like.

I did this for a couple of months because I was sad and stressed. It gave me a ray of hope and small spark of joy. But it only lasted for a day or two. I ended up having to many things that I do not necessarily needed.

Buying things to make us happy is not bad especially if you’ve worked hard for it. But, if you are doing this just to alleviate negative emotions, you have to reconsider you purchasing decisions.

A retail therapy is a band-aid solution. It will never cure your wounded soul. Perhaps for quick moment you’d forget that you are hurting but this won’t solve the problem.

We have to understand why we are sad, stressed, or hurting. Acknowledge what we are feeling. Think whether we have control over it or not. Face it. Deal with it. Retail therapy is a form of escape. Stop running away from it. It is there to contribute to your growth. Look at the good side of the situation you are in and have a positive mindset. Not easy but doable.

Commitment.

One word that is easy to say but not to execute.

When we say yes to something, we have to give your 101%. Give the discipline and effort it requires.

Saying yes to a task would me giving your focus and attention to that regardless how difficult or easy it is. If you need to triple check something just to make sure your craft is something you will be proud of looking back.

Do not settle in mediocre work because you are not born to be an average, you are born to live your full potential.

Yesterday, I told myself that I will just take an hour nap and then do my things because I was really sleepy. I ended up sleeping until morning and broke my writing streak. 😦

I should’ve written my yesterday’s entry but I chose sleep. I always choose sleep regardless of the consequence I will face the next day. Up until this point I am not sure if I am choosing sleeping as self-care or self-protection.

But, what’s the difference? Sleeping because you are tired after working your ass out is self-care while sleeping to escape a task is self-protection. The latter is cowardice creating regretful consequences. Self-care is being smart of knowing when to rest to have the energy to be the best version of yourself.

Yesterday was a self-protection. I was not brave. I gave in to the discomfort my brain was telling me. Something I have to work harder.

I was talking to this old guy about graduating students who do not know what to do what they want after graduation and ended up not working on the field they did in college. The common ground was they failed to plan.

Sometimes it seems to be pointless especially if nothing that we planned worked out. The universe may have other plans for you but do not fall into that trap of not planning just because nothing is conspiring.

Plan even if plan Z did not work out. Force yourself into a habit of planning before you sleep and right after you wake up. It makes a lot of difference.

When things are easy it is easy to say that it is worth it. However, if we struggle to get things right we question ourselves, will this be worth it? As I mentioned in my previous post, the past is in the past and so is the future. At this very moment, we are clueless whether we are fighting the right battles or not.

So, is it worth it? To answer that you must know what you want yourself to be in the future. Simple life? Not-so-simple life? Is there other route to get what I want without struggling? I guess regardless of which way you go, challenges are inevitable. They create growth. And without growth the future looks scary.

Maybe it will be worth it. Maybe not. The thing that your future self will thank you is that you tried even if it is frightening and giving you sweaty palms. Old people will tell you that the most regretful things they have done were the ones they did not.