Care for and protect them as they grow, the essential things that distinguish you from everyone else. It could be as simple as always wearing a smile, seeing the good in people, loving yourself, and practicing self-forgiveness. It could be anything you hold/consider to be so dear to you. It could also be as important as self-love, self-esteem, forgiveness, gaining emotions, spirituality, or having the edge to learn. It could be anything.
Self-nurturing is a gradual process. Something that often starts unconsciously. I believe we do this more when we are younger when we dreamt of becoming the people we idolized.
For me, practicing self-nurturing started as an unconscious practice. Eight years ago (2017), I consciously decided to take a self-improvement task/challenge, which has led me here. Learning to write and share my short life experiences with you. I find it interesting sometimes when I pose and look back at the slow transitions that led to my transformation. The stimulus to this decision occurred when one of my coursemates shared a video of a very young black girl diligently explaining the importance of the book “Seat of the Soul” by Gary Zukav. I was wowed by what I heard from that video. Immediately, I downloaded the book and was fed by life with its content for over a year. I still see myself with a notebook and a pen, writing out the points I wanted to hold onto in future days. This has become a habit I still use today. After that, a couple of books followed suit; there was Advancing Despite Adversities by Odims Great. Then Faithful Abundant True by Kay Authur, Priscilla Shirer, and Beth Moore, and Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki. These books coupled with a few others reshaped me mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. To me, these books prove that a good book can be very powerful. Reading is now part of my daily life. It is one of my most treasured habits. It is one of the best ways I use to gain knowledge and improve myself.
Self-nurturing is a journey in which a person grows one step at a time. This growth is a continuous process that never ends. However, in this process, it is vital that each day you grow better than you were on the previous days.
Have you ever planted a seed? I mean any kind of seed. The most exciting thing about seed planting is that it grows. If you go to a cornfield used by different farmers, you will notice something unique on each farm. You would notice that each farm is different from the others, no matter how similar some may look. This noticeable difference is a product of nurturing. Nurturing has the ability to produce an effect wherever it is practiced. Back then in 2017, I started self-nurturing with the hope to grow. Today, with dreams of being great, I continue to care for and protect my essential traits, which I believe, distinguish me from everyone else. Self-nurturing is a practice wish anyone can engage in. Actually, I think everyone should engage in it. If you give value to yourself, you will go for the things that add value, self-nurturing is one of those. Self-nurturing is a voluntary act that you would have to undertake to promote your mental, physical, emotional, social, and cognitive development.
What you nurture is exactly what will grow in multiples. If you nurture love, you will have a love for yourself and be able to reflect this to your surroundings. If you nurture pain, you will grow bitter and reflect the exact thing to your surroundings. It is always best to make a smart choice.