Substitution Principle

So my husband is really healthy, and when we met I was not. Adjusting has been slow and steady, but hey, it's happening! I've been thinking about how that is. Tom talks about it frequently in regards to his clients, and I think it applies to more than just nutrition. It's the principle of substitution, and it's a pretty easy concept to grasp - you make small changes by substituting one bad thing for a better thing.

For example: I substituted white tortillas for wheat tortillas. I substituted sugary cereals for raisin bran (don't get me started, I LOVE RAISIN BRAN. So that was an easy perma-substitution :) ). We've been trying to be better about what kinds of music and movies we let into our home, and so we've substituted with cleaner things. I substituted my running music for Mormon Conversations on the Mormon Channel (I threw that one in because they invited me to tell my friends about them, and to make them a part of my day, every day. Don't worry if you didn't understand that part, you have to listen to it to know exactly what I'm talking about). As it so happened to turn out, I feel MUCH better when I run to the Conversations rather than music. Weird, huh?

Sometimes I get discouraged because I'm trying to improve myself and prepare myself for the best family life that I can manage, and people get me down. I'm not trying to be more righteous than anybody else, except for my old self. I'm not trying to out-health anyone else or be more fit than anyone. I'm just trying to be better because God wants me to be. He wants that for all of us! So shouldn't we be celebrating everyone's attempts at substitution for the better things?

And by that same token, I really need to stop judging. If I don't like it when people judge me for what I do or say, then why do I have such a hard time allowing that for others? Which reminds me. In my World Religions class, we've obviously been studying other religions. And in a few of them is this foundational principle that my teacher calls The Silver Rule: "Confucius say: Do not do to others what you would not want done to you." Interesting, isn't it? As a Latter-Day Saint, I know (though I struggle to live) a higher law, the Golden Rule, that we Do unto others what we would have others do unto us. I like that difference.

Okay, let's get back from that tangent, where were we?

And even though I'm not perfect on those substitutions, and I still sometimes have a desire to revert to my old ways, and boy howdy I still have a long way to go...I feel like I'm getting somewhere. I don't always feel that way though, sometimes I look at my "to-do-and-be in life" list and get discouraged. I'm grateful for my sister-in-law for making me feel like I'm not the only one!

Perhaps this is selfish of me, but I pray to recognize my strengths as often as I pray to recognize my weaknesses. Sometimes I see one or the other more apparently, which is how I know I still have work to do, but I am becoming more confident in who I am at this point in my life. I'm working towards good goals, I'm trying to fill my day with good things, and right now that's all I can worry about. That makes me feel good. I'm trying to find ways to make more simple substitutions, and I'm grateful for the examples around me that help me to do that, and inspire me to make the changes I need.