Well, I signed up for the homework again to get myself back into it. With my new job, I have had a hard time keeping up with posting and doing the homework. My dh says, "So? It's not like it's mandatory!". But for me, it really helps me stay focused, reminds me to choose good, better, best and keeps me accountible when I "fall off the wagon". It also reminds me to not be so hard on myself and get back on that wagon with the next meal, not tomorrow or Monday or some other arbitrary date I set in my head. And, that I"m not out here alone with the struggle. Taking on the homework again reminds me why I like doing the homework and makes me pay attention to the other homework, if only so that I don't repeat others from the same week!! And even if I don't have time to post, I"m reading the daily assignments and doing them in my head and thinking about them throughout the day. So, here's my homework.....

What keeps you coming back to the homework? And give us your perspective....are you new? did you start the journey 1, 2 or more years ago? maintaining? What do you think of the homework...what homework inspires you? What homework makes you laugh? What homework makes you cringe? Maybe we can inspire some of the lurkers to post...
Mel

I believe that we are all here because we want to maintain a healthy lifestyle. And while that is a noble goal, the reality of it is that it’s just plain old hard work. We all know that it boils down to “Eat less. Move more.” But how do you keep those words from getting stale? We log into the forum.

Homework is the key to keeping this board from going stale. Yes, the “conversation” here ebbs and flows; but the daily homework assignments are a constant. I know that it’s never a waste of my time to see what’s been posted because someone will have posted a new homework assignment.

To answer some of the specific questions, I am starting my sixth month in the forum, although, I did take five or six weeks off. I guess that still puts me in the “newbie” category.

Homework that inspires me is homework where I feel that I’ve gained some insight into who I am or what makes me tick. I don’t know that I can say with any specificity what type of assignment that is because I think that I would probably answer the same assignment differently at different times. Sometimes I’m just not ready to deal with a certain issue, but months later, it all comes pouring out.

I don’t remember any homework that was particularly funny. I know that I also like the “getting-to-know-you” types of homework. They can be fun, especially after a run of assignments requiring a lot of thought.

Homework that makes me cringe is any assignment that leads me to places that I simply do not want to go, i.e., issues I’m not ready to tackle. But I’ve also learned that those assignments are probably the most beneficial to me because it means that there’s something going on in my head that is not resolved. And unresolved issues usually send me to the refrigerator. And while it’s certainly easier for me to root around in the back of the fridge than in the back of my brain, the effects of the former outweigh (pun intended) the effects of the latter.

Bill

I don't always respond to homework assignments either but they really do help with motivation and just hearing how others are "dealing" with their own life situations.

I really don't like for the homework to always be really SERIOUS. 3 or 4 thought provoking assignments per week is enough for me and I really like for the rest to be more "fun". I also like the option of either simply giving a short response instead of having to post long answers to multiple questions. Sometimes I have time and I'm in the mood and other times I just think about the questions without posting.

It is always nice to have different people write the assignments. Different views, situations and personalities always helps to keep the work fresh.

While I don't respond to each and every homework assignment, I search them out every day.

Many of the assignments really help me focus a bit more on issues that I may be having myself.

I'm always amazed by how insightful some of the assignments really are.

P.S. I really enjoy the "getting to know you better" assignments that pop up every now and again.

I don't always have the time to respond to the homework or post, but I always check this board read the "assignment" and answer it in my head.

I am not new to this journey, but seriously recommitted in February. Doing the homework helps to keep me focused and on the straight and narrow. All assignments don't necessarily apply to me, but I do read them all and the ALL make me think.

It also helps to know that I am not on this journey alone, that we are all in this together.

Barbara

I have been here on the board and doing the homework as long as there has been homework. In the beginning, homework was something that KD assigned to us. Then, there was this period of time--spring 2004 I think--when she was going to be travelling a lot promoting her newest book and she asked if board members would volunteer to do homework in her absence. From there, it became an ongoing thing, with KD having Mondays and a rotating group of board members as volunteer homework captains on the other days of the week.

I adore homework, both as a captain and as a member. When I am a captain, I try to put effort into it--to think of something that will not only help ME work through MY issues and further MY journey, but help others work through their issues and further THEIR journeys. I am probably known as one of the "heavyiest" homework captains, i.e., I tend to go for the heavy-thinking stuff. I try to balance that with some lighter "getting to know you" stuff, though.

As a member, I read the daily homework and either respond or not, based on how busy I am and how much I personally relate to the homework (i.e., how much it touches on my own issues). Some homework, I can't relate to much, so I don't do it. For example, most of you are coupled or at least live with someone, I am single and live alone. So a homework that requires me to interact with someone else is probably not going to get done. Some homework I intend to respond to but either don't have time to respond at the time I first read it, or it requires some other work before I respond and then I may forget to come back to it. But most of the time, I respond not only because it furthers my journey but because I enjoy it. I prefer homework that I can see the captain put thought into--those are the ones most likely to capture my attention and get an indepth response.

I can't think of many homeworks that made me cringe. One way back that made me uncomfortable was when we were asked to say something to ourselves in the mirror (I think it was about loving ourselves or being worth the effort). I did it and I'm glad I did it, but it was uncomfortable. Sometimes, there are homeworks that seem overwhelming...not an "That makes me cringe or feel scared" kind of way but in an "Oh, that seems like too much to tackle right now." kind of way.

I know that the topic of body image is one that a lot of people either avoid totally or find other ways to respond that aren't really what was intended. Homework assignments about body image almost always have less responses at the end of the day than easier assignments. I try not to let that hurt my feelings, as a captain, but I also will not allow it to deter me from approaching that topic. I think if we allow peoples' discomfort of a topic to deter us from using that topic for homework, we do both ourselves and the group a disservice.

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