How are we doing? ... a little test to find out ...

OK - so how are we all doing? Let's find out right now :-) ...

Take a piece of paper. Yes, yes ... go ahead ... get up - don't be lazy. This part absolutely needs some paper and something to write with. Got it? Yes? Wonderful! Now starting on the left, write your name, followed by IS .... e.g. KIKI (Your name) IS ___________ ... and without stopping to think, as spontaneously as possible, add all the words that come to mind ...

Keep going till you have at least 10 adjectives (more is OK). There's a good chance some of these words show you in a positive light, and some don't. Now, take another piece of paper. On this, using the positive words, write sentences about yourself. E.g. Kiki is a good joke teller, etc. etc. Make a list of sentences that describe you as having good qualities.

Next - {{drumroll}} :-) - go to the bathroom and bring back the roll of toilet paper (or get a box of Kleenex). Carefully, since this paper is not meant for writing, using each of the 'not so nice' words, write out sentences about yourself on each square sheet, e.g. Kiki is a crybaby (I used to be called that by my family a lot when I was young :-)... ) etc. Once all the words have been used up in sentences, each on a different square of paper, go back to the bathroom with this pile, read each one again, and one by one flush them down the toilet.

So, what did we just do? Well, at a very core level, we took the first step to start reclaiming parts of ourselves. These adjectives that you wrote aren't really your opinions of yourself, but opinions of others that you bought into, a long, long time ago. Before deeper and more lasting work can be done, it's enough to take the first step to disidentify from the negative energy of these words and cut lose of them.

Go back now to the other list with the nice things you wrote about yourself -- add a few more sentences, if more positive descriptions of yourself come to mind ... really slow down while reading these - take in each one, smile, take a deep breath and allow your heart to open up. When you are done, put this piece of paper somewhere safe but handy, to look at at least a couple times a day.

How did that feel? Great, I'll bet - and on that note, 'A la prochaine' ...

Kiki ;-)