The Magic of A Trip Down Memory Lane (In 3 Simple Steps)
While our lives may be on temporary hold right now, our memories certainly don’t need to be! What do you say we take a trip down memory lane this week? Given that we’re all cooped up in our houses and we’re not out and about as much as we normally are, let’s make the best of our time by recalling some of the best times of our lives. This is an exercise that will surely bring a smile to your face! And since being happy is always a great mission to have-we clearly have nothing to lose.. Right?
Step 1:
First if you have it available, get out a piece of paper and write down at least 3 (but preferably 5) really wonderful memories that you can recall from your past. Memories that you know will instantly put a smile on your face and fill your heart full of joy. It could be meeting the love of your life for the first time or holding your child in your arms. It could be getting a call back from that job interview and them telling you they wanted YOU for the job. Maybe it was the day you brought home a new pet or got a new car. What about the day you got promoted, or the day you successfully completed a huge project you’d been working on for a very long time. Whatever the memories are, simply recall them now and write them down.
Step 2:
Once you know the events you want to write about, take some time to write out absolutely everything that you can remember about each one of these days.. Where you were, what you were doing, who you were with, and most importantly HOW YOU FELT!
Write out as much detail as you can possibly remember but be sure to take your time completing this step. If it takes you all week to get through them — so be it!
Keep the stories in a place where you can easily re-read them once you’ve gotten them completed too, so if you’re anything like me-even though I have a notebook beside my favorite morning chair — I tend to make a lot of entries directly into my phone because it is generally always around and I can pull up whatever I need rather easily.
Step 3:
Re-read them! Feel the feelings that you felt that day come back to life for you. Appreciate the power of your mind to recall such vivid detail and emotion. It is THAT emotion that will get us all through this rough patch. It is putting ourselves in our happy places even if only for a few minutes a day.
Go there.. Feel it.. Over and over again.. Daily, weekly, monthly, whenever you need to!
Your brain doesn’t know any different. It will fire off the same emotions as it did the first time and your body will respond accordingly. It’s a glorious little magic trick we can perform quite easily.
And lastly.. We thought we’d throw in a little extra bonus step.
Step 4:
Know deep down that more are coming!
Perhaps when the next really good day rolls around maybe you’ll be eager to add it to your list while it’s all still fresh in your memory. Appreciate your joys my friends.. Even if they are from your past. They will keep you healthy.. and happy too!
