Self Care Relief Society Activity

 I now have the calling of being the Relief Society Activity Leader, which gives me the responsibility of planning and executing meaningful gatherings for the women in our ward on a regular basis.   Party planning is NOT something I enjoy whatsoever, so it was with a good deal of trepidation that I embarked on this calling.  In about the 6 months since I was called, it's proven to be a calling that challenges me and has brought me to tears more than once, but it's also been one that has proven rewarding to me as we've gathered, learned, and connected together.

 I know that this blog has turned into a hodgepodge of content--all  church related, but pretty varied besides that--but I thought it might be fun to share some of my successful activities here. 

 When I plan activities, I have a few "rules" I like to keep in mind to help me plan a well-rounded activity. 

Rule #1:   SPIRITUAL ASPECT.   I want every activity to have at least a 5 minute spiritual message at the beginning to invite the spirit and to tie whatever we do that night to Christ.

Rule #2:   CONNECTION.  I want every activity to foster connection among the sisters in some shape or form.  As a newbie to the ward, this is ultra important for me, because there really is NO other forum for connection built in to our church lives anymore.  Our ward only has activities once or twice a year, our ward is not naturally all that social or friendly,  and Sundays these days offer little time for anything other than gospel instruction.  In the three activities we've done so far, we've had one activity that was all about getting to know each other, another one where we had time during a dinner to chat with our table-mates, and one where we had an extra 15-20 minutes built onto the end for people to sit and chat with each other. 

Rule #3:  VARIETY.  I want to offer a variety of types of activities, so as to create the widest appeal possible for the sisters.  I know that there is no way to please everyone and I also know that different types of activities will appeal to different people, so I want to make sure that we are covering our bases and offering enough variety that  most people will be drawn to attend at least one activity during the year. 

Rule #4:  MARKETING.  I feel like marketing the activities is a HUGE part of my job, because I never want to hear that someone  wanted to come to an activity but didn't know about it.  Marketing in our ward includes handing fliers out at church, making sure it's included in the ward bulletin each week, making sure it gets announced in sacrament meeting and other meetings,  sending out an email from the RS, and since we live in Utah now, also putting up signs in the neighborhood and dropping fliers off at everyone's doors.   If someone didn't get the memo after all that, then I can rest easy knowing that I did my best to let everyone know at least! 

So, here's a glimpse of our activity earlier this month: 

Here's the digital flier I created on Canva to include in the RS email and the ward bulletin (which is digital in our ward). 

I also printed them (just on my home printer) and handed them out before sacrament meeting a few weeks before the activity.  That way, people got it on their calendar.

 Here's a summary of what we did: 

1.  We set up 3 rooms near each other in the church.   A MUNCH and MINGLE room with chairs set up in a semi-circle and a table full of healthy snacks.   We also had a MEDITATION room with a few soft chairs set up around the edge and a bunch of blankets for people to sit on the floor.   The third room was the MOVEMENT room, which was the RS room with everything moved out of the way

2.  We started the night in the  MUNCH and MINGLE room.  Someone shared a beautiful spiritual message based on these two articles (this one and this one).   The main idea being that we need to figuratively put our own masks on first, so that we can be our best selves for the people around us.  That means taking care of our spirits, our bodies, and our minds. 

3.  When the spiritual message was done, we split the room in two and sent half of the group off to the MEDITATION room and half to the MOVEMENT room.   Each class was about 15 minutes long. 

4.  The MEDITATION room was quiet, dimly lit and had blankets spread out on the floor.  A woman from the ward led us in mindful meditation.   It was very relaxing and perfect for the end of a long day. 

The MOVEMENT room was also dimly lit and everyone received glowstick bracelets upon entering (purchased from The Dollar Tree).  A woman who is an exercise instructor talked a little about how important it is to move our bodies, then led us in super fun, laid back dancing.   Being someone who is clumsy and has zero sense of rhythm, it was a fun way to dance without feeling like anyone was actually watching me! 

5.  After the first class ended, everyone switched places to give the other class a try.   When both classes were done, we all headed back to the MUNCH and MINGLE room to eat healthy snacks and to socialize. 

It seemed like everyone loved the laid-back opportunity to munch and mingle and it made me smile to see so many people just enjoying being together. 

In the end there were over 30 people who came and it seemed like everyone enjoyed themselves.  The best compliment I got about it was from someone who has zero idea that I have anything to do with planning the activities and she told me that not only did she have fun, but that  it was a valuable reminder to her to "put her own mask on first".   

All in all, a great night!