Step Two: One Step At A Time

"There are no mistakes. The events we bring upon ourselves, no matter how unpleasant, are necessary in order to learn what we need to learn; whatever steps we take, they're necessary to reach the places we've chosen to go."

I warned you last time that the hard work was about to start. But actually I lied. You see, I've learnt the hard way that making grand statements about how you're going to change your life and become the epitome of moderation and self control overnight can....well, end in a not so moderated and self controlled way. That's not to say that you can't dream big- in fact, quite the opposite. One must always maintain a clear vision of the goal. But, if you don't have a plan then how on earth are you going to get there?

It is for this reason that the journey to becoming sophrosyne is akin to "looking after the pennies"...except the pennies are small changes, the pounds are acts of restraint or self-awareness and the big bucks come when sophrenity (yeah, I made that up but let's just roll with it) is part of every day life.

These baby steps can come in all sorts of guises. My first mission is to simultaneously decrease general slobbery and increase elegance. Admittedly the fact that I have chosen to achieve this by always having my nails filed, clean and painted may seem a minuscule but, as you will come to realise, sophrenity is a state of mind and my perfectly manicured talons are serving as a daily reminder of my journey!

The key thing is to choose something that will make a difference, no matter how small. Harmonie is currently on a mission to make her bed every day and Ritto was so excited by the prospect of a pre-work morning shower that she covered her bed in reminder post-it notes- like I said, one solitary step at a time. At present, Sapias is putting us all to shame with her sudden and somewhat obsessively keen interest in yoga (I'm sure there's something shady going on there...)

Of course, there will be hiccups along the way. Having painted nails is not going to magically transform my bedroom from a health and safety hazard into a sophisticated sanctuary. Harmonie's made bed might actually convince her that it would be rude not to share her efforts with not quite eligible visitors and Sobrietas will still lose all inhibitions courtesy of mid-week wine despite her efforts to drink more water (albeit it flavoured and sparkling). But that's not the point. We are ticking this plan off one box at a time and every small victory is a great one!

Decide what yours will be, commit to it and, in the immortal words of Jordin Sparks (remember her?!);

There's no need to rush,
It's like learning to fly or falling in love,
It's gonna happen and it's supposed to happen,
That we find the reasons why, one step at a time.

Until next time...Love, life and laughter,

Sophrosyne
xxx

Step One: Epiphany

"Epiphany: a sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into  

the reality or essential meaning of something, usually  

initiated by some simple, homely, or commonplace occurrence or experience."

 

 

The first step of the plan is simple: acceptance. Believe me, when you have your "epiphany moment", you will know. Take the example of Ritto- she woke up in the middle of the night feeling slightly worse for wear. In fact, she was feeling quite a lot worse for wear, couldn't make it to the loo and so threw up in her fur throw. Don't worry, the "sick blanket" has now been relegated to a permanent position on the terrace floor. The antithesis of togetherness.

 

The tipping point could also come as it did for Harmonie following a first date- she'd met him online so should have known it wouldn't end well. Probably a step too far when she woke up with a half-eaten Domino's and an Australian in her bed though. No self control and moderation here.

 

Sobrietas's moment of realisation came in a slightly more painful fashion. She'd gone out in her sensible heels but that didn't stop her taking a somewhat impressive tumble down the stairs in a busy club and sustaining a fairly significant arm injury. Fear not though, her shoe loss resulted in a "Cinderella moment" when her Prince Charming scooped her up and made sure she "got home safely". More of an issue when she woke up with him the next day and his innocent question of if her arm was swollen was misconstrued as him calling her fat. Poor boy. So not sophrosyne.

 

So, we've established we need to change. Well done. Step One of the journey to becoming sophrosyne is complete. Maybe treat yourself to a glass of wine as a figurative pat on the back before the hard work starts with Step Two: One Step At A Time (coming soon).

 

Love, life and laughter,

Sophrosyne

xxx



Becoming Sophrosyne- The Togetherness Plan

"Sophrosyne was a Greek goddess. She was the spirit of moderation, self-control, temperance, restraint, and discretion."

As a recent graduate living in London, life can get a little crazy at times. There's working hard, long hours and unprecedented levels of stress. Throw in the constant temptation of "a quick drink" and the need to let one's hair down and you have the recipe for, let's face it, not the most "together" of lives.

Becoming sophrosyne started as a joke between me and a colleague- Sobrietas, who you'll be hearing a LOT about- but soon developed into "The Togetherness Plan". Our mission? Negotiate the trials and tribulations of the corporate graduate world to reach our ultimate goal of becoming well-balanced and respectable human beings.

Did I mention that we're single? This adds a whole new level of complications, shame and general bad decisions to our already unravelling lives. So, join us on our journey, share your words of wisdom and laugh with us at our frankly ridiculous misfortune!

Step 1 of the plan coming soon!

Love, life and laughter,

Sophrosyne
xxx