Lent gifting day 40

It's technically the last day of the 40 days of lent (even though technically Lent isn't over yet). And I have decided to give away 2 toys today. These are more pieces of memorabilia than toys though. 

 

These two toys were gifts to celebrate two of my three graduations. The left Owl was a hand knitted gift from my mum who gave this little cutie to me for graduating high school and the little professionally made koala (wearing Bachelor of Arts colours) was a gift for my undergraduate graduation. When I got my masters I didn't get one of the toysbecuade I didn't fly to the eastern states for my graduation. I did spend my actual graduation day wandering around in the mortarboard (from my first degree) just because I loved it. 

I am sure these toys will do more for someone else than they are doing for me at the moment. Right now they are dust collectors. They look pretty but they don't do anything for me at all. I love seeing my mums skill in the owl but the blanket that I photographed the toys on is one my mum made for me. I also have hundreds of other little bits and pieces that my mum has made, mended or imagined for me. Saying goodbye to these two toys isn't anything that I am sad about. I am pretty happy actually because I know they will make someone else smile. 

I wanted to share something gorgeous with you all too. Today my mum went to church and one of the church ladies (who have known both mum and I for years) gave mum a package to give to me. It's gorgeous. She knew I had been sick lately. The last time she saw me I was sobbing all the way through the church service. It was a bad day for me physically and emotionally. All kinds of bad crap has hit me all at once. So today she sent me a "care package". 

 

I love this kindness idea. It's basically 7 gifts, something to open every day,  for a week, to make you feel like you are love and appreciated. I wanted to share because it is such a gorgeous idea for any friend, family member or coworker who is sick or going through a hard time. We could all make little bags like this and give our kindness freely. 

   

The message you attach could be anything you want. Encouraging the receiver. The first parcel I opened, for Day One, today was the red package. 

 It turned out to be a gorgeous Vanilla Bean candle. I love vanilla so it turned out very well indeed. 

I felt really honoured that the little group of people at the church had thought about me enough that they decided to gift me one of these little care packages. It was beautiful. I feel very special. I felt like I had been seen and heard. I feel like I have friends at the church mum goes to because they knew I needed a reason to be happy and then they did something that makes me happy. They shared their kindness and generosity. 

This quote struck me today and I think it sums up this act of kindness perfectly. 

 

When you act with Kindness you are a HERO to me. ❤️

I hope this finds you all well. 

Love Daena 

Lent gifting day 34

Karate was a passion of mine for a long time. Many of you won't know the I trained for 21 years, in Renshinkai, finally gaining my 4th Dan (4th level black belt) several years ago now. I trained at least twice a week for most of that time. I loved & hated it. I loved my karate family. The people I trained with for that time are still people I cherish even though we don't see each other much anymore. I loved the energy I had, the power, the strength. I hated the muscle pain and most importantly I hated giving it up. 

Because I have Endometriosis I had to give up my training & teaching because I was so fragile. One accidental punch or poorly placed kick and I could have ended up in the emergency room (assuming someone could have gotten me out of the foetal position). I got to the point where I couldn't stand up let alone run and fight. The fragility is what I really hated most. 

I miss training. When I get my health back I hope to go back to Karate. 

In the meantime I am getting rid of a small "graduation" gift mum hand knitted me when I went for my 3rd Dan Black Belt and of course survived and earned the belt! 

 

Part of the reason I am passing on this little guy is because he will fit in a shoebox (for the Christmas Shoebox appeal) but also he's a painful reminder of what I'm missing. He's been stuffed in the back of the cupboard for the last 4 years. Weirdly I don't have the same sadness when I look at my Gi (aka. Karate suit) or my black belt (with its 4 red stripes). I don't get that sadness when I look at my karate certificates or even my karate licence and grading book (I still have these things in the hope I can return to the sport in the future).

I love karate and I enjoyed doing it for so long. 

People assume that Karate is very violent and sometimes it can be (if you aren't trained well or are training for something else like MMA). I must admit I have broken a few bones from Karate but I've broken 4x as many from other activities like tripping over at school or falling out of a boat. What I did learn from Karate is confidence, respect (for myself and others), strength (physically and mentally), and discipline. All of things have helped shape me into the person I am today. 

What sport, hobby or activity have you given up? Or have you had to give up for whatever reason? Would you go back if you got the choice? 

Much love, 

Daena x

Lent gifting day 18

The more I give away the more I find that I want to give. Has that ever happened to you? 

It is the same with kindnesses. The more kindness you bestow on others the more you want to do. It's boarderline addictive. Just with none of the bad side effects! Hehehe. 

Today's kindness and gifting is something that is still in its packet from when I got it back in 2015. This glass from Coca Cola was a freebie from McDonald's. 

 

It's been about 6 years now since I gave up coffee and coke (most strong caffeinated drinks) because of chronic stress induced insomnia. The fact I even own a coke glass is kind of funny. So donating this to someone who like the glasses or loves coke (I know a few) seems far more appropriate than me keeping it in my boxes of stuff in my cupboard. 

Have you looked at what you are using? Does it align with your current lifestyle? Does it align with your values? 

I know for me, owning a coke glass doesn't align with my lifestyle or values. So thankfully I can give it to someone who can use it and whos values and lifestyle aligns with it too. Yay for giving!!! 

 

(Check out my Pinterest board for Kindness Idea to find this quote and many other kindness inspired pictures). 

Much love to you all! 

Love Daena x

Lent gifting day 16

Today I spent some time with my mum helping her get rid off few things. Making space for her to be able to do some of the creative work she thoroughly enjoys. 

Her graph piece (for those following at home) is not as long as mine but she's started getting rid of things to charity which is awesome. My niece is also well ahead of where she is supposed to be this time of Lent, which is awesome!!!! The best part is moving stuff that has been basically useless but has been in our lives for such a long time!

For example, I bought this under garment for a wedding I was involved in ages ago. Like decades ago (okay I'm not that old but it was (I think) for my sisters wedding which was 17 years ago now. So almost decades but definitely a decade a go. Scary. I don't feel that old. 

 

I think I wore it twice for the same dress. Sadly it's been sitting in my closet ever since. It's amazingly still in wonderful condition and it will be perfect for someone else. This cost me about $100 when I bought it all that time ago and if it gets sold at a charity shop they wouldn't ask for even half of that. Sadly it also doesn't fit any longer so I don't know why I've kept it all this time. 

How are your donations going? Are you playing along at home? Have you chosen a charity to donate to yet? If not then find ones close to you that do the most good in your eyes. Do some research to see if their values align with yours. 

Enjoy, 

Love Daena 

Lent gifting day 15

Simple and sweet today. 

My lent gift for today is probably highly offensive to some. And for that I am sorry. This magnet was another cheap thing that I found in the "gift box" ready to give to someone. After I bought it I realised just how UNkind it was. Even though I have a healthy dose of sarcasm and a good sense of humour, I just couldn't bring myself to give this one to anyone. 

 

I think the following picture that I (roughly) did from a Pinterest quote sums up my "gifting" perfectly (check out my Kindness Pinterest board for the original). 

 

 

I may have regretted buying the magnet but you will never regret being kind!!! Someone at the charity shop may have a different sense of humour to me. Fingers crossed it will be loved and enjoyed rather than remain hidden in my box of gifts. 

Much love,

Daena 

Becoming a blog junkie...

Hey everyone,

Are you surprised to see me back again so soon?

I don't know about you but I am surprised to see myself back here... writing again so soon. After all I thought I would fall straight back into my no-blogging-unless-I-really-should-ness.

But I have some Good news! I have now got internet at home! YAY! :) I guess you are now wondering how I was posting on here daily for a whole month without the internet at home... well for the most part I was writing everything I could before hand on my laptop with out internet access... uploading photos from my phone and when the blog was almost ready to post I would upload it whilst using my mobile as a modem. I have to say this internet at home thing is a lot less complicated and a lot easier to do! :)

Well yesterday... I had to make the active choice to not blog... and it was harder than I thought (am I becoming a blogging junkie?). However, I was over on the 365days of Kindness Facebook page giving away another set of 3"x3" cards for people to give away as their own kindnesses. Tonight is another draw... so if you want to you can go over to check out the last two GIVE AWAYS!

I cant stay away from Blogging for long, now that I have gotten in to the habit (not nuns habit because that would be weird!). So maybe I can keep going! :) After all I am like 22 months behind on my day to day kindnesses. And thankfully I found my 8 journals (Yes that was a whole 8 Journals) that will help me catch up and share.

There are only 7 journals in the picture, I know. But the 8th is almost filled so its still in my room waiting to be finished.

Now I just have to sit down and actually type them all out... add photos and links (if there are any) and then BAM! Done! Okay... I wish it were that simple! So be kind to me when I am slow to get these blog posts out.

What did you think of Sustainable September? Do you think we should do it again next year?

I hope you are all well.
Love to you all,
Luv Daena x