There are a lot of celebrations in the month of February: Groundhog Day, Valentine’s Day, American Heart Month, President’s Day, Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday and National Random Acts of Kindness Day, just to name a few. That’s a lot of celebrations for a short month, and I’m sure there are more.
Of all the festivities, the most memorable is Valentine’s Day: the day when we give chocolates, flowers, jewelry, marriage proposals, special dinners, store-bought or handmade cards for that special someone. It’s not surprising that showing and sharing love, which we associate with the heart, is celebrated in the same month as the American Heart Association’s call to take care of our physical hearts.
Caring for our physical heart requires healthy eating, exercising, and getting ample rest (I need to work on going to bed earlier!). It’s also about knowing our family health history. My mom had heart problems so every year I go for a physical and visit with my cardiologist.
Everything we do stems from our heart both physically and emotionally. Our hearts can be kind, loving, trusting, caring, forgiving, joyful, happy, peaceful and open. But there are also things that we can carry in our hearts that can hurt us physically: shameful secrets, deep scars, profound hurts. These can make our hearts angry, loney, anxious, sad, grief-stricken, unkind and unforgiving–all of which can impact our well-being.
Our hearts are the eyes to our souls. How we treat ourselves (physically, emotionally and mentally), how we allow others to treat us, how we shape our environments all come from the heart. Everything we think or feel stems from it, so how do we best protect it?
- Spend time with God: make it a priority to keep our heart healthy.
- Guard our heart: set boundaries–it’s okay to say “no”.
- Keep a grateful heart with a gratitude list–“Give thanks with a grateful heart.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
- Find ways to love yourself.
- Use affirmations to battle negative thoughts.
- Forgive yourself and others.
- Spend time with encouraging friends.
How do you protect your heart, physically and emotionally? Share your ideas in the comment section.
Happiness
Expressions of love
Available to listen
Remembers our deepest desires
Tender and kind
