by Linda Rodriguez
I’ve been around for a lot more than a few years. And,
stubborn as I can be, I’ve learned some things along the way. Oddly enough,
it’s not the big lessons that have made a difference in my life, but a series
of small rules for happy living that I’ve learned to make a part of my daily
life.
1.
Do at least one thing a day that gives you
pleasure.
2.
Live your life in chapters. Focus on the chapter
you’re in now. You don’t have to do/have/be it all now!
3.
Don’t get overwhelmed. Break everything into
baby steps. One page a day is a book in a year. Fifteen minutes a day on any
overwhelming or distasteful task adds up and eventually will lengthen on its
own. The ordinary kitchen timer is your friend.
4.
Always clean up your messes.
5.
Be kind to yourself and others.
6.
Give something back.
7.
Use it, appreciate it, or lose it. Your body,
mind, belongings. Remember, unapplied knowledge is wasteful (f not tragic).
8.
Make time to do often what you do well and
enjoy. Spend time with people who think you’re great.
When the world isn’t
noticing you, notice and reward yourself. Give others recognition, in turn.
9.
Make quiet time for yourself alone every day. And
a corollary is have a place, even merely a spot, that’s just for you. Use it
for devotions, meditation, journaling, or just reading. Give yourself 10
minutes of silence every day.
10.
Pay attention to your breath. Conscious breath
control can help you control stress, worry, and fear and replace them with calm
and peace.
11.
As my Cherokee grandmother taught me, you create
the path you’ll walk on in life with your words. Think before you speak. Remind
yourself that, to a great extent, you are creating your reality when you speak.
12.
Pay attention to your own emotional needs and
desires.
13.
Decide what you want your life to look like. Write
it down. In detail.
14.
Act “as if.” Imagine if your desired life were
here now, if you could not fail. What would you do? Do it.
15.
Conserve your energy. Rid your life of energy
thieves—negative people and habits.
What about you? What rules would you add to my list?
Linda Rodriguez’s third Skeet Bannion novel, Every Hidden Fear, was a selection of
the Las Comadres National Latino Book Club and a Latina Book Club Best Book for
2014. Her second Skeet mystery, Every
Broken Trust, was a selection of Las Comadres National Latino Book Club, International
Latino Book Award, and a finalist for the Premio Aztlan Literary Prize. Her
first Skeet novel, Every Last Secret,
won the St. Martin’s/Malice Domestic Best First Traditional Mystery Novel
Competition and an International Latino Book Award. Her short story, “The Good
Neighbor,” has been optioned for film. Find her on Twitter as @rodriguez_linda,
on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/LindaRodriguezWrites,
and on her blog http://lindarodriguezwrites.blogspot.com.
