How do you nourish your life?

Blogging is a new experience for me. I am an intensely private person so it's been interesting putting my life and journey down in words. I was forced to start talking about myself during school last year. We did alot of what we called "paired shares" in class....in other words, you turned to your neighbor, a person you had probably never met before 20 minutes earlier when you selected 24D and he/ she selected 24E- both hoping that you were close enough to be in the midst of the action but far enough away to not get called on to speak in the microphone- and were instructed to talk about any range of topics including your health & wellness history, goals for the future, financial situation, fears, dreams, spirituality, sex life, etc.... Speaking to strangers about such intensely personal things was incredibly difficult for me and the exercise was not optional. I was very resistant at first, however, the more I was forced to practice sharing my feelings....the better I got.....the better I got the more I wanted to do it....until....by graduation weekend I had feelings, emotions and tears spewing out all over anyone and everyone I met....including a very nice and concerned bartender at this great funky Cuban restaurant where Stokes & I stopped in to get a freshly made Mojito....I assured him, sitting at the bar, in the midst of the "ugly cry" that I really was just very very happy....poor man. He's probably still confused.


I started the blog as a way to keep up with our adventure this year and as a venue for people to "hear the story" without me telling it over and over. I'm not a writer so it was hard for me to get started but, as things tend to evolve in my life, it has become a wonderfully therapeutic tool for me to "share". I've been overwhelmed with the readers' responses I've gotten.......THANK YOU! Apparently my path toward simplifying my life has resonated with a bunch of folks and I'm grateful to have an outlet where I can talk about my experience.

I was reflecting on the positive contribution this blog has made to my life and this quote came to me in an email one morning....another great reminder of how important self-expression is:
"One of the quickest ways to become exhausted is by suppressing your feelings."

Sue Patton Thoele, 1988

As a health counselor I encourage people to find different ways to nourish their lives - it's not all about food. I'm grateful to be able to take care of myself through writing....how do you nourish your life?