Restoring ourselves when running on empty can be as easy as filling your car with fuel.  Here are a few ways to do it.

If you have ever had someone close you die, there is an empty feeling that wells up inside.   You may end of with their material possessions, but there is a loss beyond words. The ending is so permanent and the feelings of emptiness so overwhelming.   I have had this experience on 3 different occasions.  After many years, the wholesome and beautiful memories do flood back. The lovely thoughts have filled the void.

When one finally goes through their possessions, the experience can lend you insight.  I have a lovely 3 tier corner shelf that my grandmother gave to me when she was ill. She was in the hospital and we were conversing.   She said, “I know you have always loved my corner piece, so be sure you keep it as a wedding gift.”  I did not know that she was about to pass from this world.  She was not there for my wedding, as a matter of fact, she never returned home to her small apartment.   I still treasure that piece, because I see it daily and think of all her qualities that I need to replicate in some manner.   I don’t feel empty, but still very close to her.

After my parents died, I gathered their daily silverware out of the kitchen drawer.   It was the same silverware I had polished as a teenager; the same pattern I had seen everyday of my life. The memories came flooding back of shared dinners we had experienced together.  There was comfort in the memories that helped carry me through the last 36 years.  Loneliness can be replaced by a small token or repeating a habit someone has taught you.

My mother was a prayerful lady who silently worked.   When  I packed up their home, I found a prayer card here and there.  So many of them that I ended up with a handful.   Some were cards from wakes with people’s names on them; others were with special prayers.  They were tucked in drawers, cabinets, and purses.   It dawned on me that Mother had been praying throughout here day at every turn.    What a beautiful habit.

Emotionally we can be running on empty. It would be the same as if  we had forgotten to fill our cars with gas.  Learning to keep our cars fueled, our bodies nourished, and minds mentally focused calls for balancing our lives well.   We’d all like to think that we have those things covered most of the time, but it is really hard to stay balanced.  So eat well, move often, stay connected to a variety of people, and develop new hobbies.

Emotional baggage can cause depression and a sense of worthlessness.   It can keep us from getting out of bed, from making important phone calls, or living the life we want to enjoy.  Remember to dump all of these thoughts in the garbage.  How do you do that?  Well you simply change the tempo of the day by dumping the wastebasket and say “with this I dump all the bad thoughts.”    Replicate physically what you want to emotionally control.  Get out of the house.   Call a friend.   Just move ahead.

Create the person you want to be by taking the first step.  It will put you on the escalator of success.