This past week was pretty stressful for me. I've never really considered myself a "type-A" kind of person but recently I've noticed how uptight I've been. Purple Lipstick has been doing so well and everyday I wake up excited to see what new ways we can add value to our community. I think I've put so much of my heart into it that I'm afraid to not give the absolute best that I can... 24/7. Noni and Albert have been really working hard and we've been managing our time well, but somehow I often find myself worrying over random things.

Last week for example, we were supposed to head into town in the morning to deliver some papers. We ended up running late and leaving pretty close to 1pm. I found myself gritting my teeth and trying to hold back tears because I felt that we were behind schedule. What? We didn't even have any appointments later on that day, just a few tasks that needed to be done but that weren't time specific. I could hear myself sounding a little grumpy and snapping at Albert and Noni (who are always in the best mood! Noni likes to sing randomly and Albert has a joke and dance for every occasion haha ;)).

When I got back home that day and had some time to sit and think, I bit my bottom lip in an effort to understand my moodiness. I realized that I was stressed and hadn't taken time to do the things that calm me and bring me peace. My brother and I have a morning ritual of eating breakfast, watching a show (Adventure Time is the one we're on right now in case you're wondering ;)), and then reading the Bible and praying.  Its super straight forward and doesn't take much time, but OH MY GOODNESS what a difference it makes. That week we'd been slacking on doing it because of how much work we've had to do. I made a mental note that I would try my best to get back on track and make sure that no matter how busy we get we'd make time to do that.

Another thing I noticed was that I had been on my phone consistently. People who know me well know that texting is probably my least favorite thing in the world to do. However, because we have an event coming up soon, I've had to constantly be replying messages and looking after my allocated social media platform. To be honest that's probably why my neck and back had been feeling kinda sore. I decided that how I would combat this was to try find things to do that loosen up my muscles. That weekend I hoped into a car with Noni and our good friend Tho and we got to spend 3 amazing ours dancing and laughing in the cool morning air at a Zumbathon! I've also been making sure to turn on air plane mode when I'm eating to give myself short breaks throughout the day.

Stress is something that we all face from time to time. The important thing is to recognize when it comes and how to restore your balance as soon as possible. I've started implementing a few other things this year that have generally kept me peaceful and in an amazing mood. The most important of these being taking Sunday off as a "Sabbath." What I mean by this is not doing any work, or as little work as you can. Taking one day of your week and dedicating that day to resting is so important. For me this goes in line with my beliefs about G-d, as well as gives me time to catch up with family, friends and sleep!
All in all, some ways to avoid stress are: 1. take some time to form a ritual (stick to that ritual).
2. Try to be active doing something you enjoy
3. Make time to be still and rest
I hope this was helpful. I'm sure you'll be living a stress free, relaxed life in no time ;)

Love Always,
Marly