Are you ready to meditate with Kari?
Are you ready to be very very still and quiet?
Make sure that you're all snuggling in your bed so that you can relax and let go of your busy day.
You can close your eyes if you want to while you listen to the story and imagine everything in your mind as if you're right there with the cats.
Or you can leave your eyes open,
Whichever you prefer.
Heidi,
Cherry and Veya had been taking self care very serious.
What I mean by self care is when you take time to take care of yourself.
That means doing things that make you happy.
Doing things that bring you joy,
That make your day a nice day.
Something very simple that is something that makes you happy and that way you're taking care of yourself.
Some people call it a self love practice,
Whatever you want to call it.
But the cats had thought that it was super important and they had lots of friends that thought the same,
Especially with the world as it is today and so many people being stuck inside and their lives have been changed and it's very easy to get low and sad and depressed and lonely.
On this particular day the cats were going to be with one of their bestest friends Brooke and Brooke also liked self care.
They had decided that they were going for mannies and petties because who doesn't like a mannie and petty.
Even some boys like mannies and petties and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.
It's nice to just relax and take care of your feet and take care of your nails and just do something different.
Why not?
The cats were all at their favorite salon.
The salon was called Workingham and it was a lovely place.
It had lots of flowers all over the salon and it always made the cats and Brooke feel very special when they got there and everyone that worked there was super,
Super kind and sweet and nice.
Cherry was talking to Brooke who was sat next to her about her self care routine and how she'd been very good at doing something every day for quite some time now and it was making her not so sad about being stuck inside all the time.
You know Brooke,
Said Cherry,
You know,
You know there's so many people,
So many people.
Me and Heidi were just listening to the news the other day and it was saying how many young children are getting depressed because of the Covid and it's so sad that people are getting depressed and it makes total sense doesn't it because those people that have been locked down for so long have got so lonely and all they do is get stuck inside the house.
So I mean if that's the case then what are you supposed to do because you can't even go out in nature.
I mean you know what I did and I got this from Corrie and Corrie told me about this and Corrie said that she tells people to do this all the time because it's super important when you're doing anything to do with therapy because Corrie knows you know because she's a therapist and she said to me Cherry make yourself a happy list.
Make a happy list and write down on your list everything that makes you happy.
Absolutely everything Cherry,
Everything.
So that could be a really nice piece of kibble.
That could be a walk in the park.
That could be surfing or scuba diving or swimming with sharks for you Cherry because you're so so so crazy and I was like Corrie you know me so well and I was like I know I know I am my happy list is going to be so long and that's what I did Brooke.
I wrote down my happy list and I wrote down absolutely everything on that happy list that makes me happy.
And I mean it didn't all have to be like crazy things like swimming with sharks.
One of the things on my list is super easy and it's free and that is to look at the clouds.
I really like looking at clouds.
Clouds are just like awesome.
I just look up at the sky and I go OMG oh my goodness me.
Look at that sky today.
It's absolutely beautiful and I just take a breath and I look at the sky and I go oh my goodness all is well in the world and the sky makes me feel so small and when I feel small like that I don't mean like small like unimportant small.
I just mean it makes things look more into perspective.
Do you know what I mean Heidi?
Heidi was sat on the other side of Cherry.
Next to Heidi was Vea all the way on the end.
Vea was getting her nails painted like a princess.
They were all sparkly and beautiful and she was very happy.
She was very quiet.
She was listening to some relaxing classical music while she got all of her toenails done and well her claws you know her paw nails done.
She got all of them done all different colors but they were all sparkly like princesses.
So she was miles away.
She wasn't even listening to the conversation but Heidi was listening.
Heidi said yes Cherry that's right.
Cherry said anyway yes so Brooke this is what you need to do because I know you're not so depressed you're alright but you know it's important for all of us what you go what you do is you get your journal and if you don't have a journal that's totally fine you just get like a notebook or a piece of paper and you write it down.
Oh you know if you're one of those that's very inclined to do so you can make a note on your telephone and then you write it down and you go what makes me happy.
That's the name of the list.
What makes me happy.
Cherry what makes you happy.
And I closed my eyes and I thought about it and the list just started to pour out at me.
It just started to flow so fast and it was like walking in the park.
Err bubble baths with bath bombs.
I like those bath bombs.
They smell so nice and they make it fun.
Err a nice cup of tea.
Err scuba diving.
Err surfing.
Oh hanging with friends.
Err playing catch.
Err soccer.
Soccer makes me happy.
Err f.
Err basketball makes me happy.
Eating makes me happy.
Oh what else.
Err snuggling with my sisters on my bed makes me happy.
And I just went on and on and on Brooke.
And then and then and then I had this list right.
And then Corrie said what you do is you look at your list your happy list and you say to yourself what can I do today.
This is what you do first thing in the morning.
It's important to set your intentions for your day you know to make your day special.
So I look at my list and I go Cherry darling.
Cherry you awesomeness you.
What do I need to do today to make me happy.
And then it's as simple as this Brooke.
Just pick something off your list.
And obviously what you pick on your list has to fit with your day because if you're at school all day then you can't really go scuba diving can you.
That would be something that you'd do when you're on vacation.
Or something that you were doing at the weekends if you were so inclined.
But you know it has to make sense.
So if I was at school all day Brooke I would go what can I do on my list today that makes me happy.
And if for example I had on my list that it was like to have a nice chat with my friends then I would make sure I did that at lunch time.
Or if it was on my list to have a yoghurt because yoghurt makes me happy.
I would do that.
I would have a yoghurt at lunch time.
I would say mom pack me up a yoghurt please.
It's on my happy list.
And my happy list is so important because it's my self love care list.
It's my self care list.
It's my importantest list in the world.
And it's something that's very important don't you think Heidi.
Heidi said yes Cherry.
I have a happy list after we had that conversation with Corey.
My happy list is very important to me.
But what's even more important Brooke is that you take the time to do something on your list every day.
You have to make that part of your self care routine.
Because you are important enough to do something that makes you happy every day.
Do it.
Just do it.
Don't question it.
Just do it.
Brooke said you guys are so smart.
That's a really good idea.
I'm definitely going to do that because there's been times when I've really missed my friends or there's been things I wanted to do and I couldn't do them on this lockdown.
So yeah I think that's a really good idea.
Cherry said we're full of those good ideas you know Brooke.
Just call me.
Just call me.
Call me anytime.
Call me and I'll be there for you because I'm your friend.
I think I've got like five different songs mixed up there but you know what I mean.
Oh no you know the one I was thinking of.
Lean on me.
If you're not strong.
Cherry's nail technician looked very frightened as she listened to Cherry having her nails done singing her song.
But then she started laughing and then Cherry just assumed that of course the nail technician thought that Cherry had the bestest voice in the world because you know as far as Cherry's concerned she does right.
I will be there whenever you call me.
Lean on me.
Brooke thought Cherry's voice was awesome and she started singing the song with her and then so did Heidi.
They were all singing lean on me.
Vea all of a sudden looked at all of her friends and noticed that they must be doing something crazy and pulled one of her earphones out and started listening to them singing.
She took her all of her earphones out and joined in.
Lean on me said Vea.
When you're not strong.
She started singing the song much prettier I must say than everyone else there but don't say anything.
They had a fun time at the nail salon.
Self care is super important.
We should all have a happy list because your happy list has to be something that's a priority in your life.
What's the point in getting up every day if you don't do something.
Something even if it's very very small for yourself because you're worth it because as Cherry said or would say OMG you're awesome.
You're like the most awesomest thing in the world.
So before you go to sleep grab your journal and start writing down a list of everything that makes you happy.
Just like Brooks going to do.
And then when you're done.
Make sure that you look at your journal every morning before you get out of bed and choose something off your list that you're going to do today or the next day or the next day.
That will make you happy.
I promise.
Namaste my little friend.
