August 30--Discipline is Not a Dirty Word

In the last analysis, our only freedom is the freedom to discipline ourselves. 
--Bernard Baruch

Never pass up a belly rub.  --Barney Clark

    I want to be more like my dog, Barney Clark. I do have the napping game down quite well. It is his complete acceptance of good without reservation that I'm after. If I offer a belly rub, he rolls belly-up, paws stretching, his "go for it" position. He would lie peacefully and let me rub his belly forever if I had the time. He's not trying to figure out if he "deserves" it. He's not feeling bad because he "should" be doing something else. Belly rub, bring it on and don't stop. Enjoying this moment.

    Back to discipline. I would say that I'm a fairly disciplined person. It shows up most consistently in my exercise schedule. I have a very flexible work schedule, so discipline helps me keep some order to my days. My best example of discipline is my list of daily self-care items. Being the nerd that I am, I have the list in spreadsheet form, easily accessed from my cell phone. As I do each item, I check it off for the day, and I keep a week's worth at a time. These are simple items that matter to me in terms of daily self-care, such as spiritual practice (including this writing) and taking my vitamins. I don't beat up on myself if I don't do one or more of the tasks on any given day. I just note at the end of the week, before I erase it all and start over, where I might want to put in a bit more effort. It's truly the "little things" we do each day (discipline) that makes for a happy, healthy life. 

        Leta

Barney in belly rub heaven