Have you watched the news lately? Maybe you shouldn’t. Some days it seems like all we hear about are tragedies, victims, anger, hate, violence, crime, and wars. The world can seem like a very dark place. It can be discouraging and even frightening. It’s part of the reason I began this blog. I wanted to share some light during dark times. How we talk to ourselves and others has a big effect on how well we handle dark times. Negative self-talk creates self-doubt, lowers self-esteem, and creates fear, anxiety, and even depression. The same goes for how we talk about Read More
Category: peace
National Courtesy Month: 15 Ways to Celebrate
September is National Courtesy Month and it couldn’t have come at a better time. Part of the reason I began My Cup of Cocoa was in reaction to the negativity, hostility, and meanness I was seeing in our world. This blog is my attempt to counterbalance all of the negative things with positive, happy, and uplifting ones. We don’t have to look very far these days to find someone behaving discourteously. It’s on the news, the internet, on the roads we drive, in the businesses we frequent. One of the best ways to respond to discourtesy is with kindness and Read More
Mindfulness Works: It’s More Than the Latest Buzz Word
If you spend much time on social media, you may be familiar with the buzz about mindfulness. A search on Pinterest will yield thousands of results. #mindfulness has over 4 million posts on Instagram. I did a quick search of TED talks on YouTube and found over 100 pertaining to mindfulness. There are also several hundred apps for mindfulness. It seems like everyone is jumping on the mindfulness and meditation bandwagon. And it’s not just hype. The crucial thing to know is, mindfulness actually works. It’s not just a buzz word. Everyone is trying to sell you some peace of Read More
Quality Self-Care Begins with Self Compassion
Self-care is all the rage these days. It pops up on my Pinterest feed, in blogs I read, and even on news sites. Everyone, it seems, is jumping on the self-care advice bandwagon. In fact, I just published a post on journaling and self-care. You can read it here. So I guess I’ve jumped on the self-care bandwagon too. Perhaps I should have published this post first. Because practicing self-care doesn’t get very far unless you start with self compassion. Have you noticed that we are often our own worst critic? Our inner voice tells us things we Read More