What Have You Done For Me Lately?

Keeping with our theme of a BETTER ME INSIDE OUT I want to talk about loving self. For most of us it is not a problem doing something for others. It makes us feel good, however when it comes to doing something special for or loving ourselves we tend to come up short.  Let me be perfectly clear. You cannot properly love someone else without first learning how to care for and love yourself. I meet too many people who have gone completely overboard for someone else with the expectation of being reciprocated  and end up totally disappointed . Please understand that loving oneself is the basis on which we are able to love others. It helps know the boundaries of that love. That is why the Bible says that we love others as we first love ourselves.  This principle helps us maintain a healthy balance when it comes to love. In other words you don't love someone to the point of smothering them or hurting ourselves. What I see with people who do not maintain self love is that over time they seem to be able to forgive others, but find difficulty forgiving themselves, see worth in others, but not themselves, find time to do good for others and little or no time to be good to self, give compliments to others, but find it hard to receive them, see others as lovable, but themselves as unlovable. Furthermore it seems we get confused with the idea that denial of self is necessary for a better relationship. Even that has its limitation. It should not be a denial that ends up becoming a detriment to you. I've said all of that to say this: Give yourself a break sometimes. Do something that makes you happy. Don't find or make the time, take the time! What have you done for you lately? You've saved money, so treat yourself to that little purchase. Take the vacation. Your children, friends and family will survive it. This is not selfish. It is self preserving because it allows you to replenish and enables you to then have something to give to someone else. Do it for you. You'll thank yourself later.