Fill your own damn cup.

“The most powerful relationship you will ever have is the relationship with yourself.”

Steve Marble

We are in a strange time. I promised myself when this all started that I would not write about the ‘C’ word. But I promise, this isn’t about that. It is inspired by isolation which is a product of that. So it is not about the virus thingy.

I have spoken to so many people that are practicing self-isolation during this time that are struggling with it. I am too. And at first, I was angry with all the complainers. All the pouters who whined incessantly about how hard it is to stay at home. Stay at home with their children. Or their spouse. Or their roommate. Or some or all of the above. Stop whining! Seriously. I am sorry if I sound harsh but for the love of Pete, STOP IT!

But wait!!! I am NOT going to preach to you about how you should take advantage of this time to reconnect with your spouse, your children, your family. I am not going to preach to you about how great it is that you have the time to get at all those neglected projects completed. And I am certainly not going to preach to you about how grateful you should be for your health. You already know all that. All of it. We hear it every 10 minutes. Blahhhhhh.

This is hard for all of us but it dawned on me this weekend that maybe I have an advantage. I have lived alone for the past 4 years. So I guess I am used to it. Yes, my social calendar has been wiped clean. Yes, I am bored silly of television (never watched it much in the first place). And yes, I am missing my gym. But I have learned something over the past 4 years of living with me, myself and I. So this is what I want to share.

Take this time to re-connect with YOU. I have learned that I don’t need others to make me happy. I make me happy. Me, myself and I. So think about that. Really think about it. What makes you happy. And don’t say your family or your friends. Sure they do. But that answer is not allowed here. Think about it again. Stop relying on others to fill that part of you that fills your cup. Figure out who you are. Learn something. Improve your health. Meditate. Challenge yourself. Do something that makes you proud of you. Not something that makes someone else proud of you. Just you. This is just about you. Only about you. What makes YOU happy. Believe me this is a tough one and it does not come easy! But it is so worth it. So try.

I read an article a couple of years ago about healthy relationships. About choosing the right person. The article talked about not finding someone that made you happy, but rather, finding someone that can share your happy. That really resonated with me. And I see so many people out there searching for relationships because they think that will make them happy. They don’t want to be alone and I get that but if your happiness depends on someone else, well I am sorry to tell you but you are barking up the wrong fru-fru rainbow. Just imagine how great life could be if you figured out how to fill your cup all by yourself! Imagine.

Pretty cool I think.