One of the many, many wonderful things about getting older, wiser and more independent is developing the capacity to care for yourself. A prerequisite to catering to myself was discovering who I am — something that I’ve been addressing in various posts and videos related to spirituality. In any case, I am far from the first person to underline the importance of treating yourself well, but what I realized over the past year was that not only could I do the minimum it takes to take care of myself, but I can also do little things to bring experiences of luxury, joy and deep sensual pleasure into my everyday experience. Such pleasurable amenities and experiences include:
- Treating myself to aromatherapy in the morning.
- Figuring out what scents I love and making my own custom perfume with notes of rose, jasmine and ylang ylang.
- Doing yoga at the beach.
- Placing vases with my favorite flowers around the house.
- Lighting a dozen candles.
- Playing my favorite music on kick-ass speakers.
- Getting enough sleep.
- Styling my hair simply and beautifully everyday.
- Keeping spring water on my bedside table.
- Washing my face with all natural soap.
- Wearing lipstick. This might sound weird, but I sometimes avoided lipstick in the past because it annoyed my exes.
- Only dating people who are cool with lipstick.
- Being able to make my favorite drinks at home (whisky sours and kir royals).
- Working out.
- Getting regular massages.
- Making time to be creative (songwriting, singing, writing).
- Always making sure I have a fresh towel to step on when I get out of the shower.
- Thrifting.
- Keeping my clothes laundered, dry cleaned and ironed.
- Learning how to make my favorite restaurant recipes at home.
- Watching Mooji videos via Apple TV on the flatscreen in my livingroom.
- Getting Gelish manicures in my favorite colors.
- Spending time with cherished friends.
- Spending time in nature.
- Making coffee in the morning the way I like it. I have a weird thing where I tell myself that I’m providing “coffee service” . . . for myself . . . which kind of makes me feel like I’m getting VIP treatment at the Ritz Carlton. I know it makes no sense, but it works for me.
- Making sure my skin is fully moisturized, head to toe, with my favorite oils (usually Sweet Almond Oil).
- Getting my eyebrows waxed or plucking them myself.
- Stretching on a daily basis.
- Keeping my closets organized, color-coded, etc. so that I always have easy access to something gorgeous to wear.
- Keeping a cigar or two at home (usually an Arturo Fuente . . .)
- Making sure my bedroom is uncluttered, clean, welcoming, comfortable.
- Buying my favorite condiments (i.e. pepper jelly, sandwich spread, soyaki, hot sauce, olives, peppers and so on and so forth). I always knew I loved sauces and condiments (even more than food itself), but I rarely purchased them until recently. Happiness quotient has increased accordingly.
- Keeping my lips moisturized with all natural balm.
- Exfoliating regularly.
- Brightening my space with home fragrance.
- Using cloth napkins at home to add a touch of luxury to every meal.
- Covering my serving trays with beautiful, colorful, embroidered mats.
- Serving myself Ayurvedic chai with a pretty tea set.
- Keeping a rotation of fresh fruit and my favorite snacks on hand.
- Stocking up on soft, inviting fabrics: silk blouses, satin robes, terry cloth.
- Using a laundry bag to protect my “unmentionables”.
- Doing my own pedicures when I don’t feel like going to the salon.
- Keeping Dead Sea salts and special soaps (i.e. “Bee Pollen” or “Rose”) in my shower.
- Attending to and caring for oft-overlooked parts of the body (i.e. earlobes, belly button, ankles).
- Making regular appointments for medical check-ups.
Perhaps the most important thing I’ve done for myself is staying in touch with my own feelings and desires. I make sure to set aside quiet time for reflection, relaxation and meditation so that I can be guided by heart in the present moment.
What about you? How do you cater to yourself? What little/big things do you do to make yourself feel like a million bucks?
Aware of Awareness 