Self Care - or selfish care?

Just came home from the supermarket - Everybody and their dog are talking self-care, these days. I think it is really important to remain open to a wider perspective, to avoid ‘selfish-care’, which is a dead end. It concerns me, that there is more talk about self-care than there is about CARE. Why is that, I wonder?

Of course, we need to look after ourselves, take me-time, treat and praise ourselves, - otherwise we wouldn’t last very long. However, it all needs to be in balance. One way of looking at this might be to distinguish self-care as a conscious, productive, creative act that is done with awareness, versus passive consumption of self-care as I experienced in the supermarket.

Each and everyone of us is connected to a huge network of care. Imagine everyone having a 100m circle around themselves, and how all these circles would overlap. The way they overlap represents the care : someone cared to build the stool I’m sitting on, built the home I live in, made my clothes, cared to grow the food, wrote an email to check in with me, sent feedback after a consultation, gave me a friendly smile in the street, delivered a parcel, - the list is huge! Neither of all these people could have helped me without their own circles of care and support. We are all interdependent and connected on so many levels.

All these people cared about their contributions - thus building the amazing web of care, we have the privilege to share with each other.

Occasionally, we need specific help in some areas. When sick, we turn to the medical profession, or we call a buildingbiologist, if our home needs a health check: Let’s look after each other, so we can look after each other!

This is what really keeps all the many wheels turning: sharing and caring.

Share-Care!

:-)