Barrier
Hi, Thinking Out Loud here :D
Welcome to Mindful Monday Week 29
Here is the link for this week’s playlist. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6UiYSbrQ9IvXbu3DhpANqh?si=5f9bf836419d401e
I hope you enjoy listening whilst you read, and I hope you find the music relaxing.
If an ad plays, please stop reading and wait for the playlist to play again. The playlist will be timed for you to read to the end of this blog post, with maybe one song running over after reading.
Get a drink, maybe even a snack, and find a comfy seat so you can relax. Let go of all worries and enjoy the next five deep breaths. Please prepare for the first breath in by breathing out.
Now time for your first deep breath; take one deep breath in through your nose for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1..2.. Breathe out through your mouth for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1... Breathe in for five 1..2..3..4..5.. hold for 1..2.. And out for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1... Breathe in for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1..2.. And out for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1... Two more to go; breathe in for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1..2.. And out for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1... Last one deep breath in for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1..2.. And out for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1... Now go back to your regular breathing pattern. I hope you feel calm and relaxed.
We are often faced with different barriers throughout our lives, and sometimes they can be hard to break through or overcome, but with time, determination and a whole lot of patience, we get there. Some are small, and some a pretty big; some we can overcome on our own and others we need a little to a lot of help.
I want you to think back to a time when you were faced with a barrier; it can be as big or as little, and the first one that comes to mind is fine. Now think back to that time; were you able to overcome it on your own, or did you need help?
If you did it on your own, I want you to think about how you overcame it, what tools did you use (I don’t mean physical tools unless, of course, you did use them), what was the thing or things that helped you overcome your barrier? Was it easy? What did you learn from it? And how proud of yourself are you now, looking back at how you overcame that barrier in your life?
If you needed help, what help did you get? What did you learn from the help you had? Was it easy asking for help? How proud of yourself are you now, looking back at how you overcame that barrier? And also, how proud of yourself are you for asking for help? I ask this because I know a lot of people struggle with asking for help.
One barrier that comes to mind for me is when I first moved to NZ (I’m sure I’ve told this story before in an earlier blog post). I was at my new primary school and had been told to sit next to two girls who were in my year group. We had split yr groups, so yr 5&6 were together. I was in yr6. I hadn’t been in school for about three months or so when I started, so I hadn’t been around any kids my age in that time either. I thought I would fit in straight away, I have no idea why I thought that, but I did. How wrong I was when they told me to move my desk away from theirs, I couldn’t understand why they wanted me to do that, and in all honesty, to this day, I still don’t understand why they did that, but alas, they did.
The barrier I had to overcome was not being accepted, not being included and feeling like I really didn’t belong not only in that classroom, but that school, and ultimately NZ (there was another incident with a teacher, but I won’t go into that here, that might be a story for another day maybe.) So how did I overcome these barriers? Well, I had help from an amazing person in the year below me, who was in my class and had seen this incident unfold; they went to our teacher and asked if I could sit next to them instead of sitting on my own. So I got placed next to two yr5 girls. I am thankful to them for making me feel accepted, like I belonged in that classroom, in that school and in NZ. Looking back now, I am proud of the people who helped me, I am proud that I found the people I needed to find, and I am proud that I remained silent, didn’t kick up a fuss when the other two moved my desk and let the universe work in my case quickly to remedy what was happening.
Please share in the comments what you are happy to share about your barrier and how you overcame it. I love hearing from you and connecting with my readers. Remember that not all comments will show as they get moderated. I am only one person and read all the comments, so please be kind.
Let’s finish with a three-deep breath breather.
Take one deep breath in through your nose for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1..2.. Breathe out through your mouth for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1... Breathe in for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1..2.. And out for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1... Final breath in for five 1..2..3..4..5.. Hold for 1..2.. Last breath out for five 1..2..3..4..5.. No hold here; you can now go back to your regular breathing pattern.
As always, thank you for taking the time to read this week’s Mindful Monday. I really do appreciate everyone who takes the time to read them and listens to what I have to say.
Love always
Thinking Out Loud xx :D
Barriers are blocks in time that we need to learn how to overcome, either by asking for help or by finding a way of overcoming it on our own. It can seem easier doing things on our own but remember, it is always easier with help. As a quote from one of my favourite books says, Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it - Dumbledore (Michael Gambon.)
