One of the things I love about Treasure Hunt Tuesdays is how writing can make even simple gifts stand out in ways I might not have noticed otherwise. But I hope the intentional practice of recognizing and sharing treasures can be encouraging and contagious for you as well!
This week I have a few small fun items on my mind, and I’d love for you to join in and share some of your treasures, too.
Gifts to Better Understand Others and Ourselves
First of all, I’ve really enjoyed the entire month of June’s That Sounds Fun podcast with Annie F. Downs. She has been hosting what she is calling #EnneaSummer2019 and talking all things Enneagram on the show. If you aren’t familiar with it, the Enneagram is simply a tool describing nine different personality types or ways of seeing the world and how each can seek to grow in health as well.
Annie hosted a conversation for each Enneagram number with friends she knows who identify with each type. She chose a man and a woman for each episode to give us a clearer picture of how people think and process from different perspectives. Even if personality tests aren’t your thing, the conversations were really interesting to help us understand people who think differently than we might… or make us feel less alone in finding common ground with what could otherwise feel like a crazy perspective.
This podcast series was also extra neat for me personally because after so long of reading and hearing about the Enneagram but not being able to figure out my “number,” I think I might actually have it narrowed down now. One episode in particular rocked my world and made me think I fit with a different type than I had ever even considered before. (I’m not sure I want to share my personal thoughts quite yet, though… maybe soon! But I ended up in a texting conversation with a friend saying, “I am dying as they describe my life right now.”)
If you find the Enneagram topic interesting, you might enjoy checking out the songs Ryan O’Neal (Sleeping at Last) wrote for each of the nine types, too. He also has a podcast where he pes deeper into each song, talking with author Chris Heuertz about the characteristics of each type as well as sharing his own thoughts as he wrote the music and lyrics for each song. It’s amazing to get a glimpse into his mind and heart as a songwriter, too, letting us understand his perspective even better.
Just for fun…
This is more on the silly side, but it was one of my favorite things on the internet last week. I’ve mentioned before that I enjoy listening to the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast because Carey is an excellent interviewer with a great variety of guests. But he’s also a fun follow on Instagram, where he gives more behind-the-scenes peeks into his life.
Recently Carey and his family went on a vacation to Europe that included a cruise, but the best part was how he shared about the many desserts his dad was heartily consuming, both before and after dinner. I think the elder Nieuwhof is my new hero!
Carey saved the clips of his dad’s dessert escapades all together in an Instagram story highlight called “Dad’s desserts,” and you can watch it here. Maybe he will inspire you to fully enjoy the good things in life, too!
A gentle reminder from a recent conference…
I was also blessed last week to be able to attend a conference for work focused on serving veterans in hospice care. There was so much good information throughout the day, and then the afternoon concluded by turning the tables to encourage all of us as caregivers.
No matter what our roles, it’s easy to focus so much on caring for others that we neglect to take care of ourselves. So each of us at the conference received a button as pictured below, and we paired up to remind each other how important it is to receive care and compassion for ourselves as we give to others. Then we vowed to actually be gracious receivers of that self-care and compassion. Maybe you could use the reminder to graciously receive care, too?
Thankfully self-care is so much easier for me in the summer, and I’ve been especially grateful that we’ve finally had some perfect outside swimming weather! Stopping by the pool on my way home from work (or on a day off) is my favorite way to unwind and refresh. We’ve had some beautiful evenings for sunset walks, too!
I hope you’ve been finding ways to take in God’s treasures this summer as well. I’d love to hear any blessings you’d like to share or any tips for self-care you might have. Feel free to leave a comment or send me a message anytime on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.
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