From Empty To Full

My ten-year-old nephew, Keaton is sitting at the lunch table at school. His carefree classmates chat freely as they chomp on sandwiches, chips and chocolate.  "What do you have? Wanna trade your Snickers bar for a bag of Cheetos? Yum! This is good!"

Keaton opens his lunch box and sees nothing. His face reddens as he looks around to see if anyone has noticed that his lunch box is empty. Yep. Empty. Mom is out of town and Dad was suppose to pack the lunch. Looks like Dad forgot that lunch boxes do not fill themselves. Unwilling to skip lunch, Keaton informs his teacher of his dilemma. She calls Dad who promptly delivers a white bag with Wendy's logo on it to Keaton's school. Crisis over. All is well.

That empty lunch box is useless if no one takes the time to put food into it. It actually becomes a burden. Who wants to carry something around just for the sake of carrying it around?

A lunch box filled with food holds nourishment for the body. Knowing that delicious food will be available whenever hunger pains strike also creates feelings of security and comfort.

So what do you do when your soul gets hungry? Do you have a plan for the times when you feel like a sinking ship? Ever think of packing yourself a Rejuvenation Box?

Why let weariness and depletion sneak up on you and wipe you out?  Pack your Rejuvenation Box much like you would a lunch box! Your Rejuvenation Box might be a small container, a file, big envelope, or maybe even a lunch box! Just make sure it is a container that is easy to fill and access.

Fill your Rejuvenation Box with ideas, suggestions and possibilities for self-care. Use Index cards to capture ideas. It will be fun to think of the many possible ways that you can revive your spirit. Most likely, just doing this activity will give you a boost!

Imagine how uplifting and inspiring it would be to sift through the contents of your Rejuvenation Box every day. Even if you don't open your box every day, it will be comforting to know that it is packed and ready for you whenever your soul is sagging.

Here are just a few ideas of things to put into your Rejuvenation Box

• List activities you enjoy (anything from lighting a candle to traveling. Do them!)
• Inspiring quotes, phrases, poems, scripture or passages
• Gratitude Lists
• Names/photos of people, places and things you love 
• Favorite photos, magazine articles, words, music
• Affirming thoughts about you and your dreams
• Anything that makes your heart sing!

Here's to being full!

With Love,

Beverly Keaton Smith 

Copyright 2007;Beverly Keaton Smith