Well January was long and when it was finally over I wrote a thoughtful post and then never published it because January has just a few more curveballs to throw. So here we are at the end of February (how is that possible?), and I’m following Joyful Jenn with her new themes for Share 4 Somethings Saturday!
Something Loved
I have actually enjoyed some weekend snow days. While I don’t enjoy when church is cancelled (I still have online church trauma left over from quarantine), it was nice to have forced rest two weekends in a row. It’s been great to have a few days where I have no where to go. Now I was fortunate that I didn’t have any urgent appointments that couldn’t easily be rescheduled, but I was surprised how much it was great to have an excuse to take it easy. (Aside from snow shoveling.)
Something that Sustained Me
Towards the end of last month I started knitting again. I had a few ongoing projects but honestly have hardly knitted at all for the last year. I’ve been knitting since I was in college and I find it a great way to relax. I’ve been forcing myself to finish one project before starting another and deliberately choosing projects small enough to actually complete in a reasonable period of time. (I already have several WIPs that are languishing abandoned that I’d like to pick up again soon). I’ve completed two projects (just waiting to block them, which is a hard last task to make time for), and returned to a project I had enjoyed but previously abandoned. It feels good to be creative in this way again, to see a garment materialize from a pile of yarn. It somehow makes me feel as though my life is more put together than it actually feels.
Something Carrying Forward
Something I started doing last year was setting appropriate boundaries around work and prioritizing my own rest. While it hasn’t always been easy, I’m still trying to do that. Whenever I have said no to extra events or responsibilities (even if they are good ones), I’ve seen the fruit of that chosen rest in my life. As I come out of a long season of difficult health issues, I’m resisting to the urge to pile on new projects and activities and instead mindfully seeking God about what I should do next.
Something To Make Space for
Our lives never seem to get any easier and the next few years hold some big things that I don’t even know how I’m going to find space for. But I’m committing to make space for relationships and for creativity.
I see it most acutely in my husband’s life but in my own as well. Busyness (work, homeschooling, household responsiblities, church commitments) can all eat me alive if I’m not careful. But I want to prioritize the relationships I’ve built that matter to me. I also want to feed my creative side lest it eat me.
This can look like sitting down at the piano for 20 minutes after dinner instead of returning to my laptop or checking my email and getting caught up in work (or the dreaded doomscroll). It can mean writing a blog post just because I have something to say or an insight to share. Jotting down a few ideas for my next book (even though I still haven’t found an agent for the last one, yet) or picking up my knitting needles or embroidery hoop.
I need to find rest and rejuvenation even within a season that feels like chaos and confusion.
I link up with a group of faithful writers monthly (when I remember to actually post) through My Joyful Life: Share 4 Somethings, as we reflect on the past month.
I miss having a piano. I think that would be a lovely break…especially in the evening when I tend to have too much time (for getting in my head!?) I was trying crochet but just recently admitted defeat. Kudos for starting your knitting again.
I haven’t crocheted since January and I miss it, but life has been difficult for me as well. The decision of what to make just seems so hard, so I just don’t make one.
What helped me was to made a few simple projects I could finish in a short period of time. The satisfaction of having a finished, usable garment helped motivate me for the next project. (I’ve made a shawl and a cowl this winter). Now I’m finally working on the sweater I started last fall and never finished.