In Nia we have this exercise or practice that is really easy yet packs a huge wallop! If you have The Nia Technique it starts on page 11 and is called the Thirteen Joints Exercise. In the back of the book, on pages 252 through 253, it is called the Thirteen Joints Renewal because they are doing it from a squatting position. But basically you move through the same major thirteen joints. This is one of those exercises that can be done fairly quickly, but can really help with the way you move through life. It is basic and easy to do Thirteen Joints Exercise.
This exercise focuses on the 13 MAJOR joints in the body. Starting with the left side you simple move your left ankle. I instruct my Nia students to move it in all directions. Think of how this joint is intended to move and move it that way. There is the front back motion and the circling motion. Circle it both ways. I also include in my instructions the encouragement for the person to be comfortable, so if it is comfortable for them to lift their foot off the earth and do the movements then that is the way to move the ankle. Some people are not comfortable balancing on one foot and it is perfectly fine to do the movement with the foot on the ground. The toe can be on the ground to stabilize and then the heel. The ankle can get the same type of circular motion with the foot on the ground. However it is comfortable is how you should move it. The left ankle is joint one.
Then traveling up the left side we come to joint two, the left knee. Again, thinking about how this joint is intended to move allows us to move it in a way that is comfortable and beneficial. Allowing the calf to swing forward and back. Or if you want to keep your foot on the ground then you can lower yourself down on the left side as low as is comfortable and come up again. This gets that joint moving.
Next is the left hip. For this hip joint we move the left thigh. For the person that is balancing on the right leg the left thigh can come up and be pressed back. The thigh can circle. If your foot is on the earth you can bend forward. This affects the hip joint. You can also “knock” your left knee, allowing it to go in and out. Bumping the left hip gets some joint action going, too. This joint is three.
Then we go to the left wrist. Move that hand all over. Flex it, extend it, wave it, circle it, just move, move, move it! Use your fingers to get more wrist action! This is our fourth joint.
Move up to the elbow. Your left elbow is the fifth joint in our Thirteen Joints Exercise. Swing that forearm around and move it all over.
We are still going up, so the next joint, the sixth joint, is the left shoulder. Here you can shrug, you can circle, you can push it back and forth and to ensure joint action you want to use the arm. Move the arm. Circle the arm, move it forward and back, lift it the arm, lower the arm, swing the arm back. Really get that arm moving to experience the action that was intended for that joint.
Now our seventh joint is really a group, it is not just one spot. The seventh “joint” is our spine. There are a lot of ways to move the spine. As with ALL the movement we do in Nia, it is important that you keep in mind your own body’s way and move your body as it is comfortable. The spine is put together so it can move in many ways, but there are many things that keep people from moving the way it was designed, so keep your own body’s way in mind as you move your spine. My instructions include looking left and right, up and down, rolling the head, bending forward and back, bending to the sides, circling around, rolling up, and rolling down . . . again, any way the body can comfortably move.
Now we are on the right side. We go down the right side of the body moving each joint as we did the left side. Now, of course, it might not be exactly the same, but I imagine you know what I mean. The right shoulder is joint eight. The right elbow is joint nine. The right wrist is joint ten. The right hip is joint eleven. The right knee is joint twelve. The right ankle is joint thirteen.
Moving the joints helps keep them flexible and mobile. This exercise can also help with drawing attention to areas that might be tight or stiff. This practice can be done in as little as one minute. As I just mentioned it could help make you realize there are areas that might need or want more attention so how long you spend on this is up to you.
Nia is a cardio dance exercise . . . . yes, it is much more than that, but that is sometimes where we start. The Nia Technique produces DVDs that teachers use to learn the Nia routines that have been choreographed by the Nia Trainers. The teacher-learning-routines process is similar to many exercise formats that are taught in group exercises classes across the board. Most often the music is adored by my students. They don’t like every song, but I would begin to wonder if they did. Nia uses a large variety and I would think it odd if EVERY SINGLE SONG was liked by every student. Every so often though there is a song that someone asks about. They want to know who sings it. They want to know the words. All of Nia routines are available for purchase as an album*, but sometimes it is just a song. Currently I am teaching a Nia routine with one of those songs.
The song is Shine by Joshua. The lyrics are as follows:
People want freedom in life
People want freedom in life
come seek a, come seek a
People want freedom in life
Verse I
(Shine within)
My sun is blossoming my dreams
aloft amidst the winds and the promises they sing
walking in the stream
lovin’ runs often in my veins
become light
so I breathe softly when it rains
crossing over phases of the moon seas change in a whisper
risen from the chambers inner wisdom
painted with the pigments of a vision(ary)
dancing in the plumage of illuminary
I ruminate the way that newness carries me towards my selfness fragrances in praises form a shelter
waves of vibrations pour over relics saturated in wellness precious moments envelope me so my language is angelic
tell it – like a picture spoken in scripture
listen – to the morning born from hope in the mists of enigmas ocean of rhythms sweet ambrosia of beginnings openness is living
Chorus
People want freedom in life
come seek a
way of living, breathing the light
it’s gonna be the
eve before the dawn song before the rhyme
open up and let your love shine
(love shine)
(repeat)
Verse II
Rays of sun trickle down my throat coated with sounds of growing abound
and hope flutters on a melody telling me to develop these heavenly grounds of mine
*Shine* *Shine*
Soul surfing the divine
nurturing intuitions relearning to visualize the moment’s gift it’s open like an infant’s mind
an intimate design a wish up in the sky wisps by “Spread your wings! Come let your spirit fly!” (fly fly)
Ascending inside levity mending the mind states to befriend a sublime face of a love you always knew and present beside waves of benevolence, rise, bathe and through cleansing your eyes you’ll see:
that love was always you!
flow through the mirror to embrace your destiny it’s beckoning so hold it dearly to your breast and feel the blessings the fibers of your being vibrant reasons to let me be me – free
a love shining to eternity, a love shining to eternity, a love shining to eternity, a love shining to eternity, a love shining to eternity, a love shining to eternity, a love shining to eternity, a love me to . . .
Chorus
Let your light shine, let your light shine Let your dreams shine, let your light shine Let your heart shine Let it all shine, shine, shine Shine now, shine now
(repeat)
Chorus
Heart shine, dreams shine, mind shine
I shine, you shine, we shine… we shine… we shine…
Composed, written, arranged, performed,
produced, and engineered by Joshua Seaman.
I first looked up the words when I heard the part I have in bold. I love that. I hope you enjoy this song. It is a look into some of the music that we dance to in Nia.
What type of music do you like to workout to? Do you have a favorite song that really helps you get your “exercise on”?
I know – well, I am pretty confident that I have mentioned before in a blog post that I don’t think of myself as teaching people Nia. Even though I say I teach Nia, I usually prefer to say I lead Nia. I wish I could find that post because I would like to check what I said exactly because I am feeling a bit different these days. Or maybe I have it clarified in my mind better. I believe I said that I don’t like to say I teach Nia because I feel that a dance teacher is one that demonstrates the steps and then has the student try to do them while the teacher watches. Then maybe the teacher demonstrates again and the student does it again and then maybe there is some adjusting done by the teacher. Or even in a group dance class setting the move is done over and over until it is somewhat learned and then the next move is added on. Sometimes there is a sequence of moves that is demonstrated then practiced over a few times and then a new sequence added on. That is what I think of as teaching dance. So in THAT way I don’t teach Nia, but I DO teach Nia.
I do not show the move then have the students practice it over and over before we dance it, but sometimes when the song allows we do a preview and practice. It could be that the song has a long introduction in which there is no specific choreography and in that time we demo a move. While I might not tell a participant in particular a way to tweak the move I will look out into my class and see something that could use tweaking so I might say or even do something that I hope will lead to a change. Say, we are doing a move using our toe and I look out and see someone using their heel, I might suggest using the toe like squashing a bug or testing the water (depends on what we are doing). So in essence I hope to teach the students that we are using our toe. I teach the move as we are doing it as opposed to the aforementioned way.
IN addition, I like to share things about Nia while we are dancing. Sometimes I talk about how Nia incorporates the BMES (Body, Mind, Emotion, and Spirit) I might explain Nia’s Five Sensations while we are moving on the floor. Allowing the Nia students to be reminded of them and possibly use them in the floorplay. I often remind the Nia class about Natural Time letting them know they are free to move through the movement/choreography in their body’s own natural way and timing. Sometimes this is actually part of the song and if not people are always encouraged to move in this way.
So, I take it back if I said — as I believe I did — I don’t like to say I teach Nia, because I do teach Nia. But I don’t teach it as if it were a dance, because it is not just a dance. While we do dance, Nia is so much more. Maybe I should say I lead people through Nia Routines and I teach Nia?
Have you ever taken a dance class like I describe – the demo-do-type? Do you see the difference between two?
Whoa. I have a Twitter account and I follow a lot of Nia people, of course. The other day one of them, Jennifer Hicks post a link to a fact sheet about skin. Many of the things I knew such as skin is the largest organ of the human body, the three layers of skin, feet have the thickest layer, over 50% of the dust in homes is dead skin (ewwww!) and some others. But I don’t think I knew about each hair having a muscle. It makes sense because how else could it “stand on its end” if it didn’t have a muscle to help it stand? And ear wax is actually produced by a type of sweat gland . . . did you know that? Everyone has the same number of melanocytes. Melanocytes are the cells that produce melanin and melanin is the protein that gives skin its color. Wow! So since everyone has the same number it is the activity of the melanocytes not the quantity that determines skin color. You can see the information for yourself on the Elephant Journal’s website, click here. What REALLY fascinated me was the “skin replacement”.
When I read that I thought, “What? Replace your skin?” So, of course I had to look it up. Then I thought, “Ohhhhhhh! I get it.” It is amazing. Sometimes I don’t think about some of the stuff that needs to be done. And let me tell you, I am grateful for not having to know. But if you have a need for skin it makes sense and this sounds really cool. Well, cool once you get over the “gross factor” and the “sad factor”. But this “replacement skin” is actually considered a “wound care device”. So this company called INTEGRA makes the INTEGRA™ Bilayer Matrix Wound Dressing which can help with severe wounds.
The product acts like skin so the wound has a better chance of healing without infection by blocking bacteria and helping control ” water vapor loss”. Wounds including: abrasions, lacerations, second-degree burns, and skin tears. It allows the skin to breath and move, as your real actual skin does. It is made up of two layers, one is silicon and the other is collagen and glycosaminoglycan. The silicon layer is removed after about 21 days of healing. Then the other layer is expected to help provide a structure for the body to build onto, so that layer gets absorbed into the body. Which for me – at this point, having no wounds needing something like this – is a bit icky as it is bovine collagen and sugars. But I am certain if I needed something to help a serious wound heal, I probably would tell myself it was like eating a steak.
But anyway . . . this interested me and intrigued me. It also helps remind me of how incredible our skin is. I mean there are 50 facts that Catherine Beekmans shared with us/reminded us of, but then also that it can heal from such deep and/or severe wounds such as those that would require something like the product mentioned here. I am sure many of you know of this product or others like it, but sometimes I am happy I don’t know these things. I am happy I have never had an occasion to be introduced to this type of thing. But then again when I do learn about it, I am just amazed.
What about you? How many of the 50 Skin Facts did you know? What about this “replacement skin”, do you think it is amazing?
You might have read my post about Sounding in Nia. That is what we call it when we make noise in a Nia class — sounding. You might have read my post about Reasons for Sounding in a Nia Class. Even if you did not read that post, I bet you are aware of some of the reasons to make noise in an exercise class. One of the biggest ones is to ensure breathing. If you are making noise you are breathing. Knowing the students are breathing is a HUGE relief to an instructor. Some of the other reasons sounding is good are it can help stabilize your core, it can act as an emotional, spiritual, or physical release, and it can be really fun. Sounding can be noises/words such as HA, HI, HEE, HOO, WAH, WAHOO, etc. Sounding can also be singing. With “Nia Music” sometimes singing is just sounds.
I always invite the Nia participants to sing. Often times I tell them it is really easy because there are no words. I have often wondered how the singer sings. I have often pondered how it is done. Then Nia put out this video*. It is an interview with Carl Tietze whose song Am I The One, is on the Sanjana Album. Sanjana is the first Nia routine I learned. In the interview Carl talks about how he invited a vocalist, Jen Folkner, to listen to the song. He said he put the headphones on her and most of what we hear on the song is from her first time hearing the music.
She is sounding. Granted, she is doing is beautifully. I don’t want to put the pressure on and say this is what we do or need to do in a Nia class. No, not at all. I am just saying that it is fine to MAKE NOISE. I did laugh when I heard this interview because I kind of imagined that songs that have no real words but are just a singer making noise was done like this. I imagined the musicians just saying, “Go!” and the singer just letting her/his voice come out.
I was recently very amazed and in awe of a woman who had never been to a Nia class before – in fact, before class she asked me what it was. So she didn’t even know what type of exercise/workout it was. And yet, while she was moving to moves she had never done, she was singing. The song was one of those songs without words, but she was just making noise in a “singing voice”. It was great! I was very impressed.
Making sounds or singing in a group workout class is not something that comes easy to everyone. Sounding while learning moves doesn’t come easy to people who normally make noise, so it was especially fun to have her in class. Plus she had that much more fun and received the benefits of sounding.
I hope this interview helps give you a glimpse into making sounds. I hope you are able to experience the benefits of making noise while do your cardio dance. You know it is fun.
Do you sing while you dance in your fitness dance class? Don’t you love the way singing and dancing makes you feel?
*Click here to go to Nia’s website to sign up for the monthly newsletter!
This is not a post about the pros and/or cons of vaccinations. I know that vaccines are hot topic. I am mentioning vaccines in this post because the news stories I have watched all say “get your vaccination”. You do what you want in regards to the flu vaccine. Just keep the McDonald’s Hot Coffee lawsuit in mind when you hear reports about the “DEADLY FLU EPIDEMIC”. That is the one where the news media blasted all over that a woman was awarded $2.9 million for spilling hot coffee on herself while driving with the cup between her legs. Stories made it sound like she sued because the coffee was hot. At the time I never heard any details, did you? My last post Details Lost – It Happens, Be Aware has information on that. These posts were spawned because I have been out and about and I hear people talking about the flu “killing” people. I hear fear. To me, it SEEMS as if the media is based on fear. To me it seems as if they want the public to live in fear. It also seems, TO ME, as if there is an agenda out there to get the public to do certain things. So I am just asking for people to think a little. To remember that we are not presented with all of the facts. And to note that even though all the information you might see is the same, that does not mean it is true. So try not to panic. Keep in mind that there are steps you can take to help keep you and your family healthy. Don’t assume that getting the flu means death. My feelings are …. although I do not know . . . .but I have a feeling that the people they are claiming “died of the flu” died of complications from the flu. Which could be argued that they would not have died if they didn’t get the flu in the first place. But they could have had compromised immune systems making any illness a danger to them. I have not seen enough details in the news stories to know.
So . . . whether you get the shot or not it is smart to still do all the things you need to do to stay healthy and give your body a fighting chance. I know that a lot of the things a body needs a person to do to keep it healthy might not be easy — as in, many may claim they don’t have time . . . . but being sick takes a lot of time. Being sick also exposes loved ones to the illness and they could have compromised immune systems and get more sick than you. ALWAYS remember that taking time to take care of yourself is a great way to show others that you love them! It is not a selfish act, it is good for EVERYONE when you are healthy.
Again . . . . take all the information the media is putting out there with a grain of salt. And do what you need to do to stay healthy. I recommend:
–Sleep. Rest. One of the biggest and best ways to assist your immune system. Your body needs sleep.
–Exercise. Exercise is another great way to boost that immune system. Some believe you sweat toxins out, so you could be ridding yourself of the stuff that weighs down your immune system. There are definitely immune boosting chemicals that get released when you exercise. Plus . . . if you are getting a good workout in, it will help you sleep!**
–Healthy diet. Eat fruits and vegetables. Avoid overly processed foods. Drink water. Drink herbal teas. Lemon water is good to help flush and refresh your system. Avoid soda and excess of juices.
–Wash your hands. All the time.
–Sneeze cough in the crook of your elbow, a tissue, or your hands (see the above) not into the air.
–Try to avoid sick people. I know this is not always possible, but when it is, do it. I find that now-a-days people are more understanding when you don’t want to hug them or shake their hand when they are sick. In fact some will insist you don’t because they are sick.
What other ways can you avoid getting sick? What do YOU do to keep yourself healthy?
**Nia is a GREAT way to exercise. Check my website to learn more. 🙂
Do you remember the lawsuit in which McDonald’s was sued over hot coffee? The news media blasted all over that a woman driving with hot coffee in her lap was awarded $2.9 million for spilling the coffee on herself. It was portrayed as a (stupid) woman, sued because the coffee was hot. But the details were never given media time or airplay. Almost 20 years later, a video was done giving more details about the case. Years ago I heard about McDonald’s having been notified that they served their coffee too hot prior to that lawsuit, but I didn’t know that the woman was not driving. You might have seen the video as it is making the rounds and has been out a for months. But, I imagine a lot of you don’t know (unless you’ve already seen the video) the details. I also imagine that, like me, you thought it was ridiculous that someone got millions of dollars for having a cup of coffee between her legs while driving and then spilling it on herself. In this post I am going to state some of the information in the video, in case you don’t want to take the time to watch the video or you just don’t want to watch it. If you DO watch it, BE WARNED: At 5:12-5:17 there are GRAPHIC pictures of the burns. (Made me nauseated and brought tears to my eyes. Please view with caution!) I have written this post to share some of the facts, plus to point out how the news media does not always disclose all the details. I feel it is important to take news with a grain of salt.
You might remember the basics: Stella Liebeck, a 79 year old woman burned herself when she accidentally spilled a cup of hot coffee in her lap. Headlines proclaimed she won $2.9 million in a lawsuit against McDonald’s. The video states:
-16% of her body was burned
-6% of the burns were 3rd degree burns
-The woman was in the passenger seat of a parked car
-The woman went into shock
-She had to be in the hospital for a week
-She wrote to McDonald’s asking for money to pay the medical bills which totaled in the thousands
McDonald’s offered $800.00. Then she contacted an attorney
-Her attorney tried to settle out of court, twice
-The temperature policy of McDonald’s at that time was 180° to 190°
-Experts testified that liquid at 180° to 190° could produce 3rd degree burns in 15 seconds
-Over 700 hundred people had complained to McDonald’s about the temperature of the coffee
-The jury awarded $200,000 in compensatory damages, however, because SHE spilled it on herself, they reduced it to $160,000
-The jury awarded her $2.9 million in punitive damages to send a message to McDonald’s to turn down the temperature of the coffee
-The $2.9 millions is based on of TWO DAYS of coffee sales
-The judge REDUCED the award to $600,000
-“Sources” say it ended up being around $500,000
-McDonald’s handbooks now show that coffee is to be served between 170°-180°, 10° lower
I’m just wanting to point out that the media does not always disclose ALL the facts and so things are not always as they may seem. They disclose enough for us to form opinions. But we are not accurately informed. It is truly a challenge to know the truth. Sometimes, I believe, we never will know the truth on a great many subjects/stories. But sometimes we will get more details even if it takes 20 years. In many cases it is left to us to find out the information and/or use our common sense in order to take action not based on the fear and/or anger generated by the media.
Do you remember this story? Do you remember how you felt when you heard a woman driving with hot coffee between her legs got $2.9 million for spilling it?
I had a new to Nia person come to class today. She called me yesterday to ask about it and showed up to class today. I like that. Of course, I asked her about it after class. She said she liked it because it made her think. She said that is what she needed. Nia is amazing because it is one of those exercises that DOES make you think. There are differences in a Nia routine. There are times when there is Free Dance, a time where you don’t think. You just let your body move to the music. You let it go and see where it takes you. It is not a trance dance, you are not in a state of trance, but you are letting your body move to the music without thinking. There is no thinking of what others think or how you look, or of a pattern, you just move. There is also the choreographed steps. Some of those steps are described as the actual dance steps there are, say a Jazz Square, a grapevine, a ball change, etc. And when learning them or even when incorporating them into a routine there may be thinking involved. There is also the imagery used in Nia. Where instead of saying reach up we might say pick an apple, instead of just saying walk we might say walk Jazzy, instead of saying get down on the ground we might say melt onto the earth . . . .these things might cause you to have to think for a moment. What are the movements involved in picking an apple? What does “Jazzy” mean? How does a body melt? Sometimes a routine will have us doing a movement that is out of the ordinary. Say against the normal “flow” of movement. And again that is where we have to think. So sometimes, yes, we do think in Nia.
Right now I have just begun teaching a routine, I have only taught it once and it is making me laugh because when I first saw Debbie Rosas do it on the DVD I didn’t understand why she said left hand on one section and right hand on another. To me it looked as if she was alternating. So the first few times I did it, I alternated my hands that I started with. When I was barring the song and I went to write down the arm choreography I stopped to watch it closely. She says left when we start with the left ONLY and right when we ONLY start with the right. There is alternating hands in between, but not alternating starting hands. This is one of those funny moves that makes me think. I love that the other teachers on the DVD didn’t quite get it either. Makes me feel better. Makes me remember that it is a practice and my brain and body will have to think about this move until I have it engrained.
I love that Nia is Body, MIND, Emotions, and Spirit (BMES). I love that new people come in and see all that it is and say they love it. I love it even more when they come back.
I always say that there was a reason Nia was once named Neuromuscular Integrative Action . . . . because that is really what it IS. I don’t know why they abandoned that, but I can imagine. It is a mouthful. And to some perhaps it sounded intimidating. Once people come to class they get to see it for themselves. It really was/is an ingenious name, just a bit much, I guess. As we are thinking we are using our nerves and our muscles.
For many food might not be something you want to talk about right now. I know many of us might have had many large and delicious meals over the Holidays. I know many that are thinking of cutting back on their food intake since they might have had more over the Holidays than they normally would have had. Well, no matter what your present relationship is with food, I am confident that you will be eating. So what is it you are eating? I am looking to get some ideas here. I am not asking for any particular TYPE of recipe, as in, I don’t need it to be gluten free, dairy free, meat free, or fat free. I am just wondering what you are eating. Not everyone that reads this blog is looking for any of that so ANY recipe you want to share would be welcome. What can happen is that people can make adjustments as necessary. Just give us your ideas and/or recipes as to what to eat!
It can be breakfast, lunch, dinner, or even a snack recipe. I am often looking for dinner recipes. You know my normal fare; roasted veggie, ground turkey, something in a tortilla (although I have been avoiding the flours ones because of the transfat/partially hydrogenated oils). My friend just pointed me to a Martha Stewart recipe that I am sure you will be hearing about soon. I am kind of interested in Polenta. What about you? Do you have any Polenta recipes? I have been making a lot of Sausage, Beans, and Rice. It is so flavorful and so easy, when I don’t have time to think of something else, I make that.
I am still enjoying my organic box of produce. I love when we get fennel. I love that Fennel Turkey Recipe I came up with. I just made it the other day. We haven’t really gotten anything new in the box lately, except cranberries and I have not idea what to do with them same as last year when I receive them. What do you do with fresh cranberries? My sister in-law put some in the stuffing over Christmas. What about you?
Maybe you had a yummy dish over the Holidays you want to share. That would be great too! Just tell me what you are making and eating. Give me some ideas. You know most of mine ideas. You know I have a stove, an oven, and a crock pot. I am not versed in how to use the grill, but I might venture out to do so, if I can get at it before my hubby gets home. He claims that as his — well, it is.
Ok so this is a call out for ideas and recipes. Any and all is fine, I reserve the right to pick and choose because somethings I don’t eat, but you can still post the recipe because there are other who eat things I don’t eat.
Oh man, kind of a crazy end and a crazy beginning. I said that Friday was my last Goodie Jar post, then I post another one. Well, I actually said it was my last Goodie Jar check-in. I said I am not going to do it again, but I am. I really enjoyed going through the little notes and reading about the Good Things. It was pretty much what I thought it would be. It helped me remember some good things that happened during the year that I might have forgotten about. It was really funny when I had to stop and think a bit to remember or understand the note. Not many were like that, but a couple. So I am going to do another year of jotting down the good things. I am trying to think of something to put them in. I am wanting to use a different vessel. Oh, I just had an idea! Maybe I will change the vessel throughout the year. Right now I just started putting the papers in a small Christmas dish. I plan on putting that dish away when the Christmas stuff goes up so I will have to find something else. Perhaps a seasonal change? Hmmmm. Whatever I decide to put them in, I am doing the Goodie Jar again.
I will not be posting a reminder every week. Maybe once a month or not even really on a schedule. You get the idea and if you are participating you can put your container in a place where you will see it and that can remind you. Remember this is just something to help us remember good things. Also to maybe take note of some of the good things that are little that we might not remember by the end of the year.
In my last check in I talked about my friend who is so organize she has a place to put her “good things” after she read them. I didn’t know what I was going to do with mine. After reading them I decided. You might know that our cat is sick. A lot of my “good things” related to her “comings and goings”, let’s say . . . I did not feel the need to keep those. Those were good things to be reminded of, but then not stuff that has longevity. Also a few were about the weather and meals so that kind of stuff I enjoyed being reminded of, but I don’t need to keep that for future reference. Not all the things were about Nia, of course. So I made two piles; one was to be thrown away and the other I am keeping. It fits in a small sandwich baggie and that is good for me. The keep pile had things like visits with friends, stuff that happened WITH people and ALL of my husband’s contributions to the jar.
My hubby said he will participate again even though it isn’t HIS thing it is MY thing. He participates in a lot of things that are “his thing”. He is definitely a good thing for me to note for my Good Things Jar.
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