Day 6

What I did (yesterday):

Yesterday was an absolutely beautiful day in the neighborhood! As I mentioned, I was able to exercise by going out for another walk/jog. I decided to try to continually do a little more and go a little farther to compete with my personal best. Since I choose to exercise outside, I decided to accomplish this by not only going as far as I went the day before, but to look ahead, and travel to the next farthest point in my field of vision. The route I am taking is sort of a winding road, so I was able to go a little further.

Yesterday was also a good day for my eating habits. While I had cereal and almond milk for breakfast, I also had a creative salad for lunch, incorporating my desire to try new things by adding a star fruit into my salad as a variation. It was pretty good!

I realized my budget leaves a lot to be desired, and decided to add together my weekly earnings, subtract my bills and rent, and figure out what to do with the rest - which is less than zero. I did get a call from a family member about temporary, part-time work with the US Census Bureau. I followed up on that and will hopefully get a call back on Monday. The key for me with the finances is to make the most of each opportunity I am presented with. I can't ask any more or less of myself than that.

Housework was a little lacking, but since I have been doing pretty well with that, I was ok with how the day went.

Once again, the bottom line is whether I am consistently doing the right thing as the opportunities present themselves throughout the day. I am getting pretty strong in some areas, yet in others, I ignore the prompting altogether. I think that is a reality for all of us in our daily lives. At the end of the day, I want to be satisfied with my choices, rely on grace for my shortcomings, and trust God with my tomorrows.

What I learned:

I listened to a radio program in which they mentioned a statistic about what trait teenagers value most in other people. That trait is authenticity. I think a lot about this blog, and even if I am not able to reach out and encourage a lot of other people, I want to be able to refer back to this and know I was authentic. I know it's taking a lot of bravery for me to write down my thoughts and be real about it. Anyone can sugar coat things to make them more palatable for others - that's what most of us do in our daily encounters anyway, isn't it? I think it stems from a fear that if people knew who we really are, they wouldn't like us. I remember hearing Dr. David Jeremiah say that if he knew what was going on in his congregation's minds, he would never speak to them again - but that's ok, because if they knew what was going on in his mind, they'd never listen to him again!

I believe we all need to be a little more authentic. We hear people say true love is knowing what a person is really like, and loving them anyway.

I learned that I want to trade posturing for authenticity - for myself and for those who value honesty in themselves and others.

Until Tomorrow~~~Elizabeth