May 2016 Reset

May is my time for a reset. It's the perfect time, in my opinion.  Sure, the New Year comes with grand schemes of self improvement and new resolutions, but to me, May is all about renewal.  It's Spring. The cold and dark have receded and are replaced by longer, lighter days.  New things are growing.  Blooms that were dormant over the winter show up again.  I love May, and I LOVE to celebrate it with a reset.

I use this month as a way to look at what needs some TLC in my life, and to give that TLC generously.  This has looked very different over the years. I've done a no-spend month to curb excessive consumption and to take a look at want vs. need (and it pads my savings account quite nicely.)  I've quit caffeine for the month.  I've eaten clean.  I've gone to bed before 10 pm every day for the month so I could feel how it felt to be truly rested (I honestly didn't know - I'd been going non-stop for so many years)  The first year I did a May reset, I stood in front of my mirror every morning and evening and paid myself compliments because I realized I needed to learn how to take them graciously. It felt awkward and silly, but it did the trick.  This type of month-long focus really works for me - I develop positive habits or I let go of some negative ones, and I am almost always healthier and happier for it. 

This year, I'm using the month of May to bring myself back around to focusing on a core belief that has been a bit shaky lately:  the belief that most people are doing the best they can.  When I'm out of balance, I watch those around me and I start to feel suspicious and think that people are actively trying to fail or to disappoint me or that they are making mistakes on purpose or out of sheer laziness.  It's judgy and unhealthy and not where I want my head to be or the example I want to set for my daughter.  When I get introspective about it and ask myself whether I really think this is true, I usually find that there is no evidence to support these ideas, and that I'm only making myself paranoid or worried or miserable.  I've noticed myself in this headspace a few more times lately than I am comfortable with, and that bothers me.  A lot.  I knew it was time to pay attention to it.

So here we go...31 days of reminding myself that everyone -myself included - is doing the best they can.  And following that reminder up with another reminder to offer kindness and compassion and respect instead of being judgy and disconnected.  And then following both of those up with an offering of light and love to those who brought me to this point.  Myself included.