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Feed Your Mind


Today I am introducing a new 8 week series on emotional well being. My personal journey to emotional well-being was a long one with many side trips and double-backs. In all there were 8 major components and I want to explore them one by one with you over the next 8 weeks. Here is Step 1 - Feed Your Mind.
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Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, 
for I am gentle and humble in heart, 
and you will find rest for your souls.
Matthew 11:29

“I’m hungry.” I hear this declaration multiple times a day from my four kids. With almost equal frequency I hear a complaint about a school or reading assignment. Why is it we humans are so eager to feed our bodies but not our minds?

As a little girl I dreamed of becoming a stand-up comedian. To make a room full of people laugh was the highest achievement my elementary sized brain could imagine. In the fullness of time, I realized that seed of a dream would sprout into a desire to speak and write.

In today’s fast paced, high tech world, however, the profession of writer and speaker requires much more of me than those two tasks. In the last few years I’ve learned to program a website, utilize social media and produce an abundance of print materials.

Each of these tasks daunted my soul. They seemed beyond me; more than I could do. I was forced to learn new skills and put them into practice.

What I didn’t know is that the process of learning would add life and health to my soul. When we learn we become more than we envision. When we explore unknown truths we expand the boundaries of who we are. Feeding your mind provides much needed nutrients to our inner self.

One of the keys to emotional well-being is plugging sustenance into our intellect not just our bellies.

Do you have a secret interest in learning calligraphy? Take a class at your local college.

Do you wish you had the fashion sense of a celebrity? Find a blog about fashion basics and read it every day for a week.

Do you have a dream that seems beyond you? Learn just one skill required to make that dream a reality.

When we expand our emotional waistlines by feeding our minds, we become infinitely more attractive not only to ourselves but to those who occupy our corner. Dare to feed your mind. Your emotions will thank you!

12 comments:

  1. Hi Shannon,

    I love learning new things - although it can be daunting to find the time or energy some days. Good job on tackling thos4e various things. You're right, being a speaker and writer nowadays involves so much more than just those two foci. May God bless and lead you! :)

    Regarding your comment at my post "Plotting Murder," the gophers are still winning, aiye! :(

    Thanks for stopping by.

    Jennifer Dougan
    www.jenniferdougan.com

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    1. Jennifer, for real - Sometimes I actually can't believe all the things I've learned in the last few years.

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  2. Shannon,
    What wisdom!!! The past few months, I've marveled that I could develop a website and maintain a travel advice blog. Really? Thirty years of travel prepared me for it, but I had no idea! I love how God stretches our minds when we apply ourselves to learning through every experience we live. You're an incredible writer and I look forward to hearing you speak one day. :)

    By the way, he comes home tonight at 9:00. Counting the minutes :)

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    1. "God stretches our minds when we apply ourselves to learning through every experience we live." I'm totally tweeting that!

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  3. Feeding your mind is also one of the keys to staying young! We frequently have this discussion in our house, and my husband thinks we need to feed our minds with highly intellectual content. I disagree...my mind is happy to be fed by learning something new like how to make homemade tortillas!

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    1. lol - If that's the key to staying young I need to do it more frequently! jk - I totally agree!

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  4. Shannon... I know you can't see it... but I am giving you a standing ovation! ((((CLAPPING)))) Well said. Bravo! Grace, peace and blessings, Carla

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  5. Nice article. I think I look beyond into the emotion and want to explore other things. I think the biggest thing for me is not to get overwhelmed by it and just be progressing one day at a time. Just a thought!

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  6. I'm constantly feeding my mind but not necessarily with the things I'd really love to learn more about. Like, how to sew... and graphic design... and drawing (the other day I tried to draw a Fall leaf and it sadly ended up looking like a marijuana leaf - and I only know what those look like from seeing pictures...really!!) I really need that super power for slowing or stopping time... :)

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  7. Learning is a life-long process; there's something new to learn everyday, no matter how mundane it could be. :)
    Have a wonderful weekend!

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  8. When I'm uninspired, I lack the zest for learning new things. I settle for the mundane and just aimlessly go through life.
    I feel I have to keep reading this post over and over again, just to motivate myself. I'll have to do some serious self-examination to determine what I really want to learn... to improve myself, and yes, to make me more emotionally healthy. Thanks, Shannon :)

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