Be kind. Be kind. Be kind.

It's been a mad week for me. I started a new job. I moved. I was ill. I have lots to catch up on. I've put quite a bit of pressure on myself this week physically and had some mental breakthroughs.

But it was during a call with a gorgeous friend this morning that reminded me.

We put a lot of stress on ourselves nowadays. We're pulled to being out of our bodies and being solely focused on the external occurrences in our lives. We work hard on our careers, we rush from A to B, we're plugged into something electronic to take our minds off those pressures (or whichever reason is most befitting for you).

So much so that we forget to ever look inwards. At how we're treating ourselves.

When you've got 101 things on your to-do list and you only get 90 done in a day, what do you say to yourself about it?

When you make one inconsequential mistake, what do you say to yourself for the rest of the week?

What do you do to be kind to yourself?

What do you do to be still?

I'm pretty sure a lot of people around me would laugh that I'm writing about being still when at times I find it terribly difficult to do such a thing. But it's something I'm working on, and I want to get you, dear reader, aware of it.

Being still can be anything from yoga to a bath, from taking a five minute walk with no electronics to sitting with your pet and solely focussing on them.

For me, it's in my night skin care routine. A bike ride on a frosty morning. Standing on the silent Overground platform at 8:58pm with your suitcase in one hand, and simply giving thanks for my life, my opportunities, the body and skin I live in.

Restoring balance. 

Now, this might seem like a selfish exercise. But kindness to others also comes from within. In giving a little to yourself, you automatically give a little to others as well - or more if you so wish.

Whether it's money, your time or even a small smile to the ticket office person who has been up since stoopid o'clock.

Kindness comes much more naturally from a place of balance. When you're subconsciously satisfied in your mind, you - or at least I know I - want to give some of that to someone else.

You get the idea.

So it's Friday, and it seems like it's been a long week for a lot of people. So my question for you is: what will you do to restore your balance this weekend?

Han x