Month: April 2020

Was I Truly Coming Down With Something Or Not

Following a quick trip to the grocery store during the Covid-19 outbreak, I began feeling that I may be coming down with something. Was I truly coming down with something or not?

Up to this point, my family and I have all remained healthy and well throughout the COVID-19 quarantine. However, following a quick trip to the grocery store I began feeling that I may be coming down with something. Although the physical symptoms I felt were real, head pressure and queasiness, I wondered if they were manifesting from a false sense of reality or if I was legitimately getting sick. Not wanting to get overly worked up about the possibility of the latter, I stayed levelheaded as I processed through whether I was truly coming down with something or not. 

Since the quarantine began several weeks back, I have become so used to staying home. When it was time to go to the grocery store to get milk, I was not the least bit in a hurry. In fact, I dragged my feet and delayed as long as possible. It was not until the evening of the following day after we ran out of milk that I made an effort to go buy more before the store closed. 

It was my first time out with my makeshift fabric mask covering my mouth and nose since the mandate to wear them while in public places. Upon my arrival at the grocery store, I took the available precautionary measures to stay healthy by using disinfecting wipes supplied by the store to wipe down not only the shopping cart but also my hands after opening refrigerator and freezer doors and picking up packaged meat. 

As I walked inside and was surrounded by other shoppers wearing face masks of differing variations and some also wearing protective gloves along with noting the existence of clear plastic dividers at the registers between the cashier and customers as well as decals on the floors throughout the grocery store for to adhere to the required spacing of physical distance between patrons, an icky feeling overcame me and continued even after I returned home. 

While lying in bed after settling in for the night, my head felt out of sorts and my body was on the verge of feeling achy. Though I allowed myself to feel what I was feeling, I wondered if my body was merely responding to the visible awareness I observed at the grocery store of society protecting themselves from catching the coronavirus rather than my actually coming down with something. 

I considered the experience similar to feeling like having earphones in my ear when I don’t have them in anymore or feeling like I am still wearing roller skates/ice skates after no longer having them on my feet or when hearing about others having lice and worrying if I too have lice when my head starts to itch. 

With the uncertainty of whether I was truly coming down with something or not, I consciously decided to redirect my thoughts away from the possibility that I was, as I felt that if I continued down that path I would probably very well become ill, as the saying goes along the lines of, “If you think you are, you are”. Instead I focused on my body actually being well as I thought about what I do to care for my body and the foods I eat that are healthy. To this thought process, I fell asleep. 

The next day it was a tender mercy that the symptoms I had the night prior were gone. I rested on the fact that the measures I saw in place to protect employees and shoppers was what brought on the symptoms and not that I was actually coming down with something. Phew!!

When have you wondered if you were truly coming down with something or not after being in an environment to which you felt icky and you came to realize that your physical symptoms were in response to external stimuli and not that you were actually coming down with something?

tendermercym❤️ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

*If you would like to  receive an email when new posts are published which includes an audio version of the post as well, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.

Freedoms In The Midst Of Restrictions

Despite orders on a state and national level precluding certain activities from taking place for the time being due to the coronavirus pandemic, there have been many freedoms in the midst of restrictions to which I have enjoyed and valued very much.

For years, I have heeded the spiritual counsel given by modern-day prophets to prepare, alongside with my husband, for any number of potential catastrophic circumstances or devastating situations that may come our way. As such, although schools, churches, parks, and businesses have most recently closed temporarily due to the coronavirus pandemic, I have not felt any anxiety, stress, panic or fear. I have felt at ease. Despite orders on a state and national level precluding certain activities from taking place for the time being, there have been many freedoms in the midst of restrictions to which I have enjoyed and valued very much.   

~It has been a tender mercy that although state and local parks have closed, the nature preserve directly behind our house has been open, where our family has spent time outdoors many of days riding numerous bike trails and leisurely enjoying the walking paths, there and in our neighborhood as the spring temperatures and weather this year have both been ideal and beautiful. 

~Even with church buildings closed, it has been a tender mercy we have been able to continue to worship and have a Sacrament meeting in our home as a family each Sabbath Day.  

~In the wake of many products for weeks being hard to get because of the insufficient supply ratio to the sudden overwhelming demand for them, it has been a tender mercy that all of our essential needs have thus far been adequate due to our efforts to have consistently prepared ongoing for times like now long before the outbreak of the coronavirus.

~Before the stay-at-home order, when I frequented stores on a regular basis as I prefer in-store shopping, I would make frivolous and unnecessary purchases here and there to which the minimal costs for each item pulled together would add up quickly. For me, the money I have saved with “nonessential” businesses currently closed has been a tender mercy. 

~On days preceding the stay-at-home order when family members went off to school and work and the house was very quiet, I wanted to be out and about constantly. With our home now filled with family togetherness 24/7, it has been a tender mercy I have surprisingly not become stir crazy and had the itch to get out of the house. 

~Also, during this timeframe of enclosure, I’ve learned I am more so an introvert than I had ever thought myself of being and it is a tender mercy how content I have been days on end without being phased and feeling any disruption to my core being.

~In addition, it has been a tender mercy that for the first time ever I have not been constantly on the go. The stay-at-home order has opened up a lot of time for me to relax and enjoy so many of my at-home hobbies and the treasured opportunity to spend priceless quality time together as a family.  

When have you treasured the many freedoms in the midst of restrictions that were present for you during times like these? And, what have been those freedoms in the midst of restrictions that you have valued during these times?

tendermercym❤️ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

*If you would like to receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.

No Longer A Means I Could Rely On

When the bathroom scale was no longer a means I could rely on to check my weight, I felt confident I had a handle on my weight without a scale due the years I had been consistently regulating and maintaining it on a daily basis.

When the battery in my bathroom scale stopped working after years of routinely standing on it to check my weight, it was no longer a means I could rely on to keep myself accountable to my health. 

A few years back, my metabolism plummeted and within a brief period of time my weight skyrocketed. After much research, an ultrasound, blood tests, going to my doctor and hearing of other’s experiences, it was a tender mercy the solution for me that reversed these sudden adverse changes my body was going through came down to a few things— eating breakfast, drinking enough water, and not exceeding a regimented calorie intake relative to my age and activity level. 

As I began doing these overall 3 things consistently, throughout the course of several months my weight gradually dropped down to my ideal goal weight and I gained back my metabolism, albeit not to the same degree as my younger years, but to the degree my feeling constant fatigue dissipated. Since that time, my weight and metabolism have remained stable. 

As my eating lifestyle shifted for the better, I desired to maintain the above adjustments ongoing. The key factor that kept me accountable to my health was checking my weight various times throughout most days other than resting from doing so on Sundays. My reliance on the number on the scale became routine.

Eating breakfast is hard for me. Drinking enough water is hard for me. If I saw that my weight increased when I missed eating breakfast and lacked drinking enough water, I knew I needed to improve at both so as not to return to my metabolism shutting down and my weight rapidly increasing again. Stepping on the scale often helped me to stay on top of doing what was best for my health. 

During the COVID-19 stay-at-home order, the battery in my scale stopped working and I did not have a replacement on hand. With my trips to the store becoming less frequent due to the order and not knowing where to get the exact battery for the bathroom scale, I did not foresee myself replacing it anytime soon. 

For years I have remained focused on regulating and maintaining my health on a day-to-day basis. As such, although I have come to rely on the bathroom scale to keep me in check, it was a tender mercy that the scale now being no longer a means I could rely on was not earth shattering. In fact, upon not having a replacement battery, it was a tender mercy I realized and felt confident I could continue to consistently and diligently maintain my healthy weight even without the scale. 

When have you relied on something that was no longer a means you could rely on and in its absence you realized you could still go on just fine without it? 

tendermercym❤️ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

*If you would like to receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.

What I Learned From A Mishap

Upon opening a box of individually non-wrapped food items, what I learned from a mishap is that it is a good idea to transfer all of the contents into a ziplock bag before storing it.

What I learned from a mishap after an unforeseen occurrence was a valuable takeaway I plan to apply moving forward in hopes it will prevent the same mishap from happening again. 

Although grocery stores were doing their best to keep their shelves stocked up with food and nonfood supplies throughout the coronavirus pandemic, a lot of items were flying off the shelves as quickly as they were being replenished due to the influx of shoppers desirous to be prepared for the longevity of uncertain times that lie ahead. 

On one of my shopping trips, I was looking for a particular food item on my list that I typically purchase from a wholesale retail store because the product in bulk quantity and individually packaged is less expensive compared to other stores. However, this product that I have always seen in stock there was completely out. When stopping at a different grocery store on my way home, I came across the product. Even though the proportional size of the product was smaller and the quantity amount in the package was fewer for more money, I cut my losses and bought it. What I didn’t know at the time is that the contents in the box were not individually wrapped. 

Days later, in the process of rearranging the food in our freezer to make room so additional food I was adding would fit nicely simultaneously to our carpets being cleaned, the since opened box was bumped and fell out of the freezer. A number of the individually non-wrapped contents of the box spewed onto our kitchen floor where a spillage of diluted carpet cleaner had dripped in front of our refrigerator/freezer which was in the pathway used to go back and forth from the kitchen sink to the carpeted areas when a container of dumped out dirty water was refilled over and over again with tap water and a triple action carpet cleaner. 

I was so disappointed and not happy about the mishap especially considering the product was in current shortage and the contents that fell out of the box being no longer edible were therefore thrown away. Although I was frustrated, it was a tender mercy I immediately gained a takeaway from the experience. What I learned from the mishap in hopes of preventing it from happening again is that upon opening a box of individually non-wrapped food items, it is a good idea to transfer all of the contents into a ziplock bag before storing it. 

When have you learned from an unforeseen mishap what action to take in the future so the same mishap doesn’t happen again?  

tendermercym❤️ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

*If you would like to receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.

Breaking Away From Negative Thoughts

Breaking away from negative thoughts of my many deficiencies came as I engaged in an activity that for me was fun and therapeutic.

Breaking away from negative thoughts that came as I struggled to grasp the know-how to use a specific technology function on my device was put on hold until after my determination to first get the function up and running.

On this casual, laid back, rainy day as I sat down in a chair in a room looking out at the landscape just beyond my backyard with my device in hand, I was excited to implement the function. I thought it would be a simple and easy process. Unfortunately, it was not. Every so often while on my device working, I had inadvertently come into seeing the steps involved. 

At first, I was confident I could navigate through what I thought I had recalled was the way to set it up. However, as time slipped by, I became stumped and baffled that the how to get it up and running was eluding me.

It was difficult to understand and know why this process to which I thought would be easy had turned out to be quite challenging. Discouragement started to surface and comparison of my weaknesses to the strengths of others on many fronts began creeping into my thoughts and lingering there. I questioned, “Why do simple tasks for others take me so long?” “Why can’t I figure out how to troubleshoot technology or complete supposedly easy processes in a relatively shortened period of time?” As I was bound and determined to figure out how to get the function up and running, comparing myself to others remained at bay.  

After a long, arduous while of not giving up, I finally accomplished what I was trying so hard to do. In the end, I was extremely frustrated, irritated, unrelaxed, and on edge. As I acknowledged my heightened emotions, it was a tender mercy I was prompted to go and do something I enjoyed that was a no-brainer. Breaking away from negative thoughts of my many deficiencies came as I engaged in an activity that for me was fun and therapeutic. I made some yummy no bake cookies I had been craving earlier in the day and wonderful chocolate chip cookies that other family members were craving.

When has acting on a prompting to go and do an activity that for you was enjoyable and therapeutic after working on something that was really hard helped you break away from negative thoughts of your deficiencies?  

tendermercym❤️ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

*If you would like to receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.