I am so glad to be feeling better by about 95%. I’ve been experiencing quite a few headaches lately, which could just be all the pollen. I haven’t consistently spent this much time outside in a while to know whether or not I suffer from allergies as an adult. Whoops!
I wanted to share a few things that have been making my little hermit life a little easier and dare I say….fun. I have been having some fun, y’all! I’m trying to make the most of this time. After all, one of the big things I prayed about at the beginning of this year was my desire to spend more time at home. Well, I ended up resigning from my job and then Virginia got a stay-at-home order. Seems like this is exactly where I am meant to be for this season. I don’t foresee another opportunity like this coming up soon, so I will most certainly look for ways to be joyful in this period of time.
- I drink tea! One of our wedding gifts was a stainless steel tea kettle and it is most certainly getting consistent use these days. I find that making myself a cup of Throat Coat, English Breakfast, or Sleepy Time tea is the perfect treat. It’s tea that I have on hand anyways.
- I have a morning routine…sort of. It varies a bit, but I like to get up, go downstairs, and bring up all the blinds to let the natural light flood my space. I tend to the dishes. I tidy up the living room if it’s messy from the night before. My most recent morning activity is stretching on my yoga mat. I also like to journal, practice gratitude, and go to scripture for the start of the day. Once my husband is up, one of us will make the bed. It helps things feel more “normal” when we’re just tending to the things we have.
- I check in with people. Today I caught up with a handful of some of my old volunteers. It was so good just to check on them and hear about their lives and shift my focus away from my own. It really lifted my spirits and hopefully I was able to lift theirs as well.
- I reminisce. I’ve been looking back lately at old pictures. Last year, being off social media, and having so much of my “photo archive” on Facebook, I didn’t get the chance to look back very often. I’ve been looking back a lot at my senior year of high school. It’s a cringe-y collection of photos, for sure, but having graduated 9 years ago now (YIKES!), I’m able to laugh about things a little easier.
- I try to make dinner an exciting experience. I love being the chef of the house and choosing the meal “plan” (plan is a loosely-used word) for the week. Nowadays, what my husband and I have replaced exciting meals out with is home-cooked meals that feel special. I’ve mastered a really spongey cilantro-lime rice recently, and I must say…I’m pretty proud of myself.
Simple things…..very simple things, but I think that’s kind of the point, right? We’ve been snatched away from our busy and extravagant lives and we return to the home for safety and simplicity. This could change everything.
If you’re reading this, my prayer for you is happiness and health. Right now, my pursuit of happiness has led me to my Instant Pot. I’m currently making yogurt, which is something I haven’t done in a while but the time just feels right to get back into it.
Until next time.
SARAH HARPER 