It's no secret that I'm struggling at the moment. You can read 3 tell-tale signs I need help with my #Depression for details on why that is.
I'm having a better day today, at least comparatively speaking and there are many reasons for that. I want to focus on the main one for right now. It's something my wife and I have instilled in our kids from a very young age. It's called *a clean slate.*
No matter how bad of a day any of us are having today, tomorrow is a clean slate.
The idea of a clean slate isn't meant to excuse poor behavior or bad decisions. It's not meant as a get out of jail free card either. In regards to our kids, we remind them every night that tomorrow is clean slate or a fresh start. It means that we can put today behind us, learn from our mistakes and start over fresh, doing better tomorrow.
I think it helps my kids to understand that they are *not *defined by their mistakes. It also reinforces that while we're all accountable the choices we make, we can still learn from them and move forward.
I have to remind myself that tomorrow is a clean slate, especially when I'm really struggling with depression.
It's not uncommon for me to beat myself up because I didn't write enough (and that's how I provide for my family, so it's quite important) or I made mistakes that were heavily influenced by my ongoing war with depression. Good, bad or indifferent, I have to own my mistakes and when I'm depressed, that isn't always easy. I can be really hard on myself which only serves to make things worse.
Reminding myself that tomorrow is a clean slate, doesn't undo the mistakes I've made today, but it gives me hope and a chance to do better tomorrow. I can't drag the past around with me because it's too heavy and there are many, more important things for me to carry instead.
