The Mindful Shopper: Learning From Your Trendy Mistakes

Written by Maya Talisman Frost


Are you a fashion trend watcher? Do you spend a lot of time flipping through magazines and analyzingrepparttar wardrobe choices of others? Do you buy trendy items only to despise them--and yourself--later?

Trend-watching--and, more precisely, observing our trend-watching--gives us tremendous opportunities to create awareness ofrepparttar 142555 traits we hope we have but are not sure we do. In fact, being frustrated, embarrassed, or depressed that we have succumbed to a trend is a perfect chance to discover what we value most.

It usually comes down to this: creativity and confidence. If we find ourselves buying that trendy little bag or those must-have shoes, that little voice inside us shouts “Sell-out!” and we start to feel that perhaps we’re not all we’d hoped to be. After all, a truly creative person would buy--or even make--something unique, and a confident person wouldn’t hesitate to go againstrepparttar 142556 current trend and head in a completely different direction, or choose to buy nothing at all.

And thus begins a soak inrepparttar 142557 self-loathing tub, followed inevitably by an abandoned item atrepparttar 142558 bottom ofrepparttar 142559 closet.

To avoid this, you must pay attention to it.

What trendy items are buried in your closet at this moment? Why did you buy them? Who were you with when you maderepparttar 142560 purchase? How were you feeling aboutrepparttar 142561 world in general and yourself in particular?

Visioning Your Future

Written by Joanne Wiley


Tears streamed down my face as I sat onrepparttar side of a raised flower bed in my garden, watchingrepparttar 142534 blue Ford take my partner Nick’s planer and other carpenter tools away. Nick had died 2 months before; it was time to remove some of these remnants that I would not be using. I felt all alone, grieving as those first things were sold.

Forrepparttar 142535 first 3 months after Nick’s death, my grief felt like a red hot brick sitting inrepparttar 142536 middle of my chest. I cried often and atrepparttar 142537 oddest places, like seeing Nick’s friend at a banquet where I was accepting a donation forrepparttar 142538 organization I represented. In most cases, when I felt sadness and tears, I expressed them. Heck, there was no way of holding them back!

After 5 months I felt a weight lifting off me. It felt like I had lifted a very heavy blanket or coat away. I had more energy and felt alive and happy. I started to pay attention torepparttar 142539 details of winding down a business that Nick had run. I considered how to managerepparttar 142540 acreage where we lived including an addition to our house that was only roughed in.

I pondered my future: What now? What was I going to do alone? What did I want? Was this a time to be celibate? I had been studying a yogi who considered celibacy asrepparttar 142541 best route for spiritual and personal growth. As I mulled it over, I realized that I wanted a relationship again.

One Saturday 5 months after Nick’s death, there was a notice pinned torepparttar 142542 corkboard at a restaurant that my girlfriend and I favored, advertising a vision workshop. We decided to go.

There were 12 to14 of us, both men and women. We discussed setting up a vision forrepparttar 142543 things you want in your life and managingrepparttar 142544 fear that surrounds new beginnings (I had an image of transforming my fears from ferocious tigers to tame, meowing pussycats at my feet).

I considered what my beliefs were around relationships: I believed that men and women could have wonderful fulfilling lives in relationships; I believed I could be a good partner.

I felt I had something to give in a relationship, With Nick, I learned a lot about my anger and wanted a relationship where I could do it different, I had seen how it had affected Nick, who was frightened when I became angry. I had had times of great outbursts, and I could see how Nick, not being available emotionally, to discuss my needs had contributed to it. I decided not to feel guilty about how I had acted. I knew I had good communication skills but needed a partner who was willing to listen.

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