A morning with coffee, silence, and conscious thoughts. Here I share how I practice choosing thoughts and self-love, and how an astrology-based planning calendar for the coming year can become a gentle compass.
Choose thoughts and self-love – my morning routine
Thank you for letting me wake up to the first day of the rest of my life. My coffee cup stands beside me, half filled with strong coffee and topped with creamy foam. Therefore, the start of the day feels extra warm.
The house is quiet, giving me space to be alone with my thoughts. Even though less helpful thoughts sometimes appear, I quickly return to the kind ones. So every morning becomes a chance to choose thoughts and self-love again.
“Thoughts are just thoughts and have nothing to do with reality. They are formed in me, by me, and do not have to be true just because I think them.”
How do you handle wandering thoughts? Did you know you can also choose thoughts that nurture rather than harm you?
Choosing thoughts and self-love – supported by research
Research clearly shows that we can influence our thoughts and well-being:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) teaches that many feelings come from automatic, often negative thoughts. By identifying, questioning, and restructuring them, we can feel better.
The method of cognitive restructuring therefore helps us replace harmful thoughts with ones that are truer and more supportive.
Mindfulness shows that we can observe thoughts without getting caught in them, which allows us to regain calm.
These books can further guide you when you want to choose thoughts and self-love:
The Power of Now – Eckhart Tolle
Wherever You Go, There You Are – Jon Kabat-Zinn
Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself – Dr. Joe Dispenza
The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem – Nathaniel Branden
Planning calendar – future support for choosing thoughts
In yesterday’s post I wrote about the astrology-based planning calendar designed for next year. If you buy it through this link and use the discount code Astrocalendar30, you’ll receive 30 % off.
It’s not an affiliate link, just a link of goodwill. I haven’t started working with the calendar yet, but I believe it will gradually help me schedule pauses and choose thoughts and self-love more consciously.
First day of the rest of my life – gratitude and a gift to share
Self-love is not only gentle words. It is also actions: acknowledging needs, setting boundaries, and choosing thoughts that truly nourish.
Whenever I notice a self-critical thought, I pause and ask, “What would I say to a friend in the same situation?” Therefore, I give that answer to myself.
The planning calendar can in addition serve as a daily reminder to choose thoughts and self-love.
A day of rest and self-care
Yesterday there was no refreshing lake swim for me. My neck ached and brought a headache that was hard to bear. So I spent the day in bed.
Fortunately, we have adjustable beds and a projector in the bedroom. While awake, I watched movies: The Godfather, a film about a boarding school, a medieval story with Richard Gere, and one about a brain surgeon. I may not have seen every film to the end—I kept falling asleep—but this became my way of caring for myself.
Later our stay-at-home son went out to buy Thai food for us. The little one spent the day with a friend and came home happy and tired. My husband left early for Gothenburg to photograph horses at the Åby race track and returned late, eager to edit his pictures.
Finally, I realized that even though I’d been unwell, it had still been the best day of my life. Why? Because I chose it to be. I allowed myself to rest, took my medicine, enjoyed good films, and gave my body the care it needed.
AHA – Between the Lines
Reading my own words, I see how the choice of thoughts and self-love shapes the entire story. From the aroma of morning coffee to the quiet of a sick day, I choose again and again a path that gives strength. This isn’t escape—it’s the courage to invest my energy where life grows.
Reflection
Taking responsibility for my thoughts is taking responsibility for my life. Even when my body says stop, the day can still be the best—simply because I choose it.
Yesterday has already settled into history, tomorrow waits farther ahead. But right now—this is where life happens. – Carina Ikonen Nilsson
A frosty morning dip gratitude Kay Pollak made this morning glow. Here I share how the stillness of nature and an unexpected traffic situation turned into a living practice of self-love and presence.
The sun streams in through the window. I sit on the sofa with double socks, a cup of coffee and a blanket. My body feels completely content – only moments ago I returned from another morning dip gratitude Kay Pollak.
A swim where every kind of beauty revealed itself.
Morning Dip Gratitude Kay Pollak – Every Step by the Lake
Close your eyes and follow me: frosty grass under your feet, a lake steaming more than usual. Each step paints new images of water clearing, the jetty stretching out ahead. The small island farther out becomes sharper with every step.
The chill in the air brushes against your legs and face. The autumn air is damp yet frostily fresh, a curious mix that almost invites you to join its dance of stillness. A squirrel runs past and disappears into a tree. Everything around you is quiet and still. A man rows slowly across the lake; the farther he goes, the blurrier he becomes.
Your body slows down, your thoughts grow clearer, and the feeling in your body is now—right now—in this very moment.
What feeling does this bring to your own body? What images stay with you? Leave a comment or send me an email – I read and answer every word.
Gratitude Returning
As I write these words, the moment comes back to me. The same peaceful feeling fills my body again. That is why these moments are worth collecting. They are the moments when I feel more than good. They make my self-love grow.
This morning dip gratitude Kay Pollak became an inner reminder that small moments can carry an entire day.
Morning Dip Gratitude Kay Pollak in My Life
Yes, I have once again immersed myself in Kay Pollak’s words. I live in his thoughts now more than I have for years. I dwell in feelings of gratitude, which makes it easy to find things to be grateful for.
And today I received an extra practice on my way home.
Morning Dip Gratitude Kay Pollak – A Car, a Risk and a Choice
A car was suddenly following very close behind me. Several oncoming cars approached. Yet the car behind began to overtake.
I chose to maintain my speed, but when I saw how close the oncoming traffic was, I slowed down so the driver could pull back into the lane quickly.
A week ago I might have honked, muttered something sharp, and stayed annoyed. But now, with Kay Pollak’s words in my mind, it was different.
“Here is someone in a great hurry. Better to help him so he doesn’t crash. It must be hard to be that stressed.”
I felt gratitude – for my own alertness, for the fact that nothing happened, and for the chance to practice replacing ‘what an idiot’ with ‘poor fellow, he must be stressed’.
Perhaps something serious had happened and he had to get somewhere fast. So I felt grateful to myself for slowing down and to the situation for giving me another chance to choose my thoughts. Therefore this morning became a clear example of how gratitude can change everything.
Fact Box: How Gratitude Affects the Body
Reduces stress – lowers the production of cortisol.
Strengthens immunity – grateful people are more resistant to infections.
Improves sleep – gratitude makes it easier to unwind.
Boosts well-being – dopamine and serotonin, the “feel-good” hormones, increase when we consciously think grateful thoughts.
Stopping today by the lake and in the car was not just pleasant. It was pure health training for brain and heart.
A Morning Full of Small Gratitudes
Now, as I sit here, I see how many gratitudes fit into a single morning:
The steaming lake
The squirrel that appeared
The car that turned into a classroom
Kay Pollak’s words that help me live here and now
These are the kinds of moments that build self-love and inner calm. They show that gratitude can live in almost every second.
Between the Lines – My Voice
This post is about more than a beautiful morning. It is my reminder that I can choose my thoughts. I practice letting gratitude take space, even in moments that might otherwise fill me with anger.
AHA – Between the Lines
Slowing down for a stressed driver became an exercise in compassion. It is a reminder that small choices transform big emotions. I really can choose to meet the world with an open heart.
Reflection
Writing this became yet another practice in pausing. Each memory—the water, the mist, the stressed driver—fills me again with calm and gratitude.
Yesterday has already settled into history, tomorrow is waiting further ahead. But right now—this is where life happens.
After a morning dip, I treat myself to luxury open sandwiches and hot coffee. A small everyday feast that completes the moment.
A frosty morning by the lake, a cold morning dip and thoughts resting in gratitude. Here I share how the body actually responds when we practice gratitude – and how simple moments can fill an entire day with joy and calm.
Yesterday I went for a swim with my wonderful swimming sisters. It was below freezing when I sat down in the car to drive the ten kilometers to the paradise by the lake. When I arrived, the water was steaming more than usual, and the sun had not yet climbed above the treetops.
Each step down to the water felt like a small tribute to life. The grass was white with frost, and the cold stung my fingers in that strangely pleasant way – like pressing a tender spot and not being able to resist.
I was the first to arrive and sat for a while in the silence. A fish broke the surface. The swim itself was quiet, without strokes. I simply floated and absorbed everything around me.
Warmth, Everyday Life and Rest
When I came home, the feeling remained. I felt deep gratitude for giving myself that moment. After breakfast I went down to the basement and ironed my shirts. I love the warmth of the iron and the thought of how wonderful it will feel to put on a freshly ironed shirt.
The day continued in stillness. I brought in the small pots and irrigation system – now everything is ready for next spring. This week I might plant some garlic. Just the thought of harvesting my own garlic next year makes me happy.
Gratitude as the Body’s Own Medicine
In the evening, while frying meatballs, I let my gratitude grow. I thought about having legs to stand on, a stove, a family who appreciates the food. It may sound simple, but research shows that gratitude releases dopamine and serotonin – the brain’s own feel-good chemicals.
When we consciously practice grateful thoughts, the stress hormone cortisol decreases, blood pressure can drop, and sleep deepens. It’s like giving the body an inner massage of calm.
Small Steps for a Big Difference
Would you like to try? Start small. Feel gratitude for a cup of coffee, for your breath, for a message from a friend. That’s where the everyday magic begins.
AHA – Between the Lines
I realize that I don’t only swim for physical well-being. I swim to remind myself that life is right here and now – in frosty steps toward the lake and in the warm steam of an iron. My days become whole when I choose to see that.
Reflection
It is in these small movements that I find myself. A silent dip, the scent of ironed fabric, a dinner of meatballs – all become a path back home to me. Here lives my happiness: simple yet strong.
Yesterday has already settled into history. Tomorrow waits further ahead. But right now – this is where life happens. In this very moment I can plant seeds that will grow into something in the future. – Carina Ikonen Nilsson
My Voice – Between the Lines
It is in the small moments that I come home to myself. In the steps down to the lake as the frost crunches under my feet, in the water’s mist, and in the warmth of the iron. I see how life reminds me that joy lives right here and now.
It takes no more than a silent swim, the scent of a freshly ironed shirt, or the sound of a fish breaking the surface. In that simplicity lies all the happiness I can carry. I choose to see it, I choose to live in it.
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