Uck! L felt small and unloved, flooded with shame.

“Wait a minute!” cried she to herself, “That message came from my Ex ages ago. I’ve been separated for 10 years. Hey Girl! Look around. He is not here.”

Wow, our star realized she was the one belittling herself for the way she washed dishes.

What is wrong with this picture?

Hey! L decided to stop doing that right then. Determined, she declared a desire to  change that inner habit of saying mean things to herself.

Now she’s content washing dishes. Sometimes Lane dances in the kitchen!

Story 2

Marlena had a date with a man she liked.

In exchange of messages after the rendezvous, he indicated how busy was his work schedule and how he would not be available as much as he preferred in the coming season.

For a few days she reviewed what she liked about him. It felt good.

Then after a bit she noticed her thoughts had strayed. M had begun listing cautions, reminding herself how little she knew about him. Oh, she heard herself complaining: Marlena thought about how hard it was to wait, speculated that he would not correspond for a long time.

“Wait a minute!” M cried caught herself. “This is not what I want to be doing!”

Our heroine returned to reviewing what she liked about him. Next M moved to pondering what a great life she had with so many engaging projects, so many friends to visit. She relishes what she does on her own steam, her independence.

This gal shifted and began again thinking good things about this fellow.

Know what? He wrote in just a few more days to ask her out. Know what? and she felt better whether he did or not!

Readers, I encourage you to cultivate an inner observer, a kind one who can discern when the habits you don’t like start to run.

Do you have some stories of when you shifted and were pleased you did? Please comment!