Every Day Matters: September

September is the month for CONNECTION.

“Like the strands of a spider’s web, our lives are intricately connected with the lives of the people around us, whether we know them or not. We are all linked through the information, ideas, thoughts and beliefs we gather from the world, and all these connections have the potential to strengthen or transform us if we keep our hearts and minds open. September is your month to focus on connecting – and on reconnecting – whether that’s with new or existing social or work contacts, with an old friend or with a setting that used to be special to you. The weekly exercises will help you consider how the people and places you are currently linked to make you feel, and how you can make the most of relationships both new and old. In this way you’ll gain a deeper, richer understanding of yourself, others and the world around you.”

Affirmation of the month: “My connections make me stronger.”*

Every Day Matters: September

Connection is in our everyday lives and it is actually something we cannot escape from, even if we wanted to. Have you heard of the six degrees of separation? (not just the song by The Script) It’s the theory or idea that all living things and everything else in the world are only six or fewer steps away from each other. That is, a chain of a “friend of a friend of a friend…” means we are all only ever steps away from anyone. Now, I don’t have a scientific background and haven’t studied this concept in depth, but to keep it simple… how many times have you walked into a new situation surrounded by people you’ve never met before and by some chance you know the same person? Or you’ve lived or worked in the same place before? Or your great aunt’s sister used to teach your neighbour’s child piano?

I, for one, find myself amazed at the size of the world. Yes, it is huge and I haven’t even travelled a tiny part of it, but in situations as described above, I get a feeling that the world is small. Or perhaps it only seems that way due to the ever-increasing connectedness of human beings.

Social media makes it even easier to be connected to virtual strangers from all over the world. I was blown away and so excited to learn of the countries where my blog is viewed – thank you! From Israel, Romania and Kenya to America, Italy and Denmark… the world seems to be shrinking. I can chat at any time to someone in Australia and feel a true connection with them – perhaps over our joint love for hummus.

I’ve already had the pleasure of working with a few fellow bloggers and it’s been amazing and ultimately very enriching. I also really want to expand my reach and connect with more bloggers in this way, so if you are interested, please do send me a message. So far, I have swapped recipes with Celine from Blueberrysmiles, featured on Amie’s Blog Spotlight over on Fitness Forster and to my great surprise, featured on Gena’s Weekly Reading Recipes at The Full Helping with my Tomato Spiced Sweet Potato Smash (pictured below).

Tomato Spiced Sweet Potato Smash

All of these connections offer ways to enrich our lives. A new friend can give a fresh perspective on a situation or can educate us on the best ways to chop a mango, for example. There is always room for personal growth, development and enlightenment. The more connections we engage in allow our horizons to broaden and our brains to burst with knowledge.

I’m reminded of the important to pro-actively connect with people by recent catch ups with old friends I haven’t seen for a while and by meeting new people at events. Welcoming the new and old into our lives makes us better people. It is also via connections I’ve made at events, festivals and shows that lead to collaborations and social media engagements that I’ve had the pleasure to work on. It’s important to nurture connections and relationships for we never know the greatness they may bring to our lives.

Stay connected x

Every Day Matters: September

*Taken from “Every Day Matters 2018 Diary: A Year Of Inspiration for the Mind, Body & Spirit”, Watkins Publishing.