#2482 tonight I feel...

In one of Susannah Conway's love letter from earlier this year (I think), she suggested the use of the prompt "Tonight/Today I feel..." when starting a journal entry. Sometimes staring at a blank page or a blank screen can be overwhelming. Sometimes there is so much on the mind that it's hard to know where to begin. Other times, the blank space mirrors the mind and it's hard to know what to write. Period. 

I've been using the prompt in my personal journal for months. It's such a simple prompt and so effective. I was thinking about this little writing space, and I thought I would incorporate the prompt into my themes. Wednesday will now be "Tonight I feel..." day.

Now that you know the backstory, let's go.

Tonight I feel that I'm doing what I need to do. Last night I felt unsuccessful because I didn't mark many things off of my at-home to-do list. I paused to think about what I had accomplished, and most of the stuff I did wasn't on my list but it was essential to me. I choose to walk the dog for her health and sanity and for mine. I choose to make dinner and then to clean up the kitchen afterward. I hate coming into the kitchen in the morning and seeing last night's dishes and pans sitting around. I choose to take the time to read because it relaxes me and I like to participate in the book club discussion on Thursday. I want to have all the pages read. 

I realized the tasks I write in my planner are things that I would like to do, but are not necessarily essential. That realization made me feel a whole lot better about myself. There are definitely things that I would like to work into my evenings, like maybe a bit of yoga or a language-learning session, and there will be nights when I can do one or the other or maybe both of those things, but time during the week is limited. Making sure I clean the kitchen and take time to read and walk the dog are the most important things to me right now, so I feel good about it. I'm thankful that I took a few minutes to examine what I was doing and identifying that I am doing what I really choose to do.