Favorite Things - OPN Exercise #1

Favorite Things - OPN Exercise #1

©Allen Merritt (2015)

In July, I posted four weeks of On a Positive Note (OPN) Challenges to help find ways to concentrate on positive activities as we relate to others and the outside world. Now, I would like to spend some time offering a few exercises which should help remind us (on a personal note) how to get back to the positive in each day. For this week’s exercise I thought it would be fun to remember things we like.

There is a song in the classic musical The Sound of Music titled My Favorite Things. Many folks will remember it and some might be able to sing it word for word. What is wonderful about the song, of course, is how it demonstrates finding important things we like in life and pinpointing them both in times of hardship and celebration. Remembering the things we like helps to take the edge off and bring on the smiles; and, you might as well pull this trick out of the toolbox when the frowns try to invade your face.  Treat this exercise as a handbag full of creature comforts that you like to cover yourself in and get all cuddly with.

For me, I love the smell of fresh cut grass in the summer time. I can imagine this scenario and always find a moment to smile. It takes me out of any present tension. Call it a break or a time out; it makes me feel much better. I can also be reminded of this simple pleasure when I pass by a house or yard where the grass is currently being mowed. I instantly come back to myself and pause in appreciation forgetting everything else for a short while.

Other things I like include, but are not limited to the following:

• Fresh blackberries off the vine
• Laundry that has been freshly air dried on the clothesline outside
• The smell of tennis balls (odd, I know)
• The coolness of a light rain and the smell of freshness afterwards
• Fireflies at sunset
• Locusts buzzing
• Light breezes drifting through my hair

Thinking on these things is like a bell being rung, which leads me back to myself. Then everything else buzzing around me takes a back seat to the here and now of what is most important to me.

With this in mind, take a few moments to sit down and remind yourself on those things which bring a sense of calm to you. Stop, pause and reflect. Jot ideas down on paper or write them down in a journal entry. Picture those things you like, experience them or go to a place which activates those things you like and you can actually experience them right here and now. Use them as a means to come back around to all that is good (and positive) in your life. That is this weeks's OPN exercise: to remember the things you like and allow them to bring moments of healing, peace and calm back into your everyday.

Here is the song link (My Favorite Things) to help get you in the spirit of this exercise.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=33o32C0ogVM

Have a great week and enjoy making use of this exercise.

Cheers!