Today, I bought myself some F-king Lilies, and why you should too.
Every once in a while, you read a book or watch a movie that you could read, listen to or watch repeatedly.
One of those books for me is called Buy Yourself the F-king Lilies.
It’s meant for somebody in their 20s, but I can live vicariously through the tremendously funny, raw, and honest author Tara Schuster.
Tara has accompanied me not once, not twice, but three times on a walk, a drive, and on a lazy Saturday morning when I needed a pick-me-up.
Each time I read it, I pick up a different nugget of inspiration by which to live. By the way, if you know somebody graduating from college, this might be an excellent book for them. And while you are getting a copy for them, buy yourself one too.
Anyhow, this time I picked up on the self-care piece of it (I: The Mind Rituals, to be precise).
While a lot of bloggers, authors, and podcasters have used the reference of why we put the oxygen mask on ourselves first, Tara so bluntly reminded me that in order for us to be there for our children as they go through their college process, we need to take care of ourselves first.
Believe me; you will not be equipped to handle the rollercoaster of emotions that your high school junior/senior has if you are not taking care of yourself. (remember tip #1 from our freebie?) Didn’t get that yet; download it here.
I know it’s often hard to remember to take care of ourselves. However, May is Mental Health Awareness Month, so for the month of May, I want you to practice taking care of yourself.
I want you to go to bed early and not spend the night searching for the gym of a school for your child or scouring college confidential on decision dates and decisions statistics. I want you to go for a walk with a friend and talk about something other than the fact that your child hasn’t prepared enough for the APs or SATs. I want you to crawl up with a good book and a glass of wine, or cue up the next episode of Ted Lasso, the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Succession or Shrinking and a bowl of popcorn and not worry that your child didn’t win or even run for class president.
I want you to buy yourself some lilies. If you’re not into flowers, buy yourself some cookies. In fact, my good friend who owns a cookie company (I know, a great friend to have!) has graciously offered all CTFM insiders a 15% discount on all sale items. Use CBA15 at checkout https://www.geoffanddrews.com/.
The kids will be all right. You will be all right. My team and my village are here for you.
PS: We just joined bookstop.com and Amazon affiliate programs. So if you are thinking of purchasing this book or any other resources/products we recommend, please do so through the links we provide (or on our soon-to-be live “favorites” page). All proceeds benefit our Head Towards College Foundation, which funds scholarships and pro bono services and hosts Working Towards Change, our student volunteer organization.
