In this past week’s Walk It Off I wrote about the things from the pandemic that I think are worth preserving. For me it’s all about protecting my free time and, of course, making space for a daily walk. This past year was abysmal, but are there habits or rituals you started during the pandemic months that you think are worth safeguarding?
i've acquired some forty-odd plants throughout the pandemic, and saturday mornings are for watering, pruning, feeding, and rearranging. living alone, i think it originally started through a need to be closer to nature (especially amidst the concrete of nyc), of something to take care of, and for the lightness they can bring to a space (yes, even the cacti). i used to just pour some water in and call it good, but now i spend time with each plant, seeing what it needs, what i could do to make it happier, particularly now after a long winter. it's incredibly fulfilling to watch them grow, or not, and also to have to troubleshoot when things don't go well, so i also get to learn in the process. all of it takes me about an hour or two on saturday morning, but it's an hour i get to spend away from screens (that is, if i don't get lost in a string of youtube videos on spider mites) and cultivating a relationship with these living beings that have very much become a part of my life.
My dad and I started texting all the time. Sharing tik toks and memes and pictures of our dogs. I talk to my mom on the phone a lot and dad and I get along great but we’ve never had this kind of regular communication. It’s been fun and has opened the door to talk about more serious things (like why policing isn’t Good) and it just feels nice, especially when I think about how he is (/we are) getting old.
Over this past year I’ve found myself returning to many things I had lost track of—meditation, bird watching, nature studies—but my most favorite thing I’ve returned to is spontaneously calling friends like it’s 1983. It brings me so much cheer to be thinking of someone and to immediately try and connect. I’m never going to text first or make another phone date again.
Going on bike rides or walks whenever possible with my dad. It's so peaceful. To get away from schoolwork and speed down a hill, forgetting brakes exist, is awesome.
I started playing disc golf (badly). Prior to the pandemic, you would not find my plus sized self doing anything physical in public other than walking. Something about this last year made me grateful for my body and helped with my insecurities. I turned 50 during this time as well and I am committed to reminding myself of my strengths and the fact that I am blessed to still exist in this world. The sun, the breeze, the rain, the wind....I am noticing these things again and enjoying them.
Not overcramming my weekends with plans... Instead, I've come to really prize my weekend mornings as a time to focus on my novel writing / revising in a really leisurely and (dare I say) pleasant way! I like to brew some coffee and get back into bed with my manuscript for an hour or two before any of my "real day" can derail me. :)
In the past year, I have been foraging a lot of herbs (peppermint, lemon balm, lavender, rosemary, mugwort, and many more) and sending tea blends to friends. I'm hoping to continue doing this. The sensory experience of stripping scented herbs from their branches is such a delight.
I live with and help take care of my elderly parents. My dad is on oxygen 24/7 and in a high risk for COVID so we decided pretty early on to self-isolate. It only took me a few days to realize we needed some sort of structure or else we were going to drive each other crazy so I initiated Arts & Crafts and Storytime. Every day after lunch, which is the meal we share together, we do some sort of art related thing. I taught my parents how to make pamphlet journals that we have filled with crayon drawings and we have a binder of Sunday coloring pages. (FYI, any craft geared towards preschoolers or kindergarteners is perfect for people in their 70s: lunch bag puppets, salt dough ornaments, paper plate masks) Every evening at 8:00 we gather in the living room and I read out loud for 20-30 minutes. We started with His Dark Materials and read everything we could from that world. We've read The Monuments Men and a Civil War history and David McCullough's biography of the Wright Brothers and his history of the building of the Brooklyn Bridge. I introduced my parents to The Princess Bride and From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. We are currently reading the 3rd book of The Wildwood Trilogy. Up next is a biography of John Glenn. I know that my time with my parents is finite. This year of just the 3 of us has shown me how to be more intentional with this time.
Like Dee, I learned to forage--mostly mushrooms. The newsletter from our farm-share (the CSA share is another pandemic discovery I'm keeping) inspired me, and then I learned a lot from the book Mushrooming Without Fear, a beginner's book that teaches the easiest mushrooms to identify. I like this hobby because it's ongoing--much more to learn--and delicious. My daughters and I also got super-into long woodland walks, and looking for animals.
A couple of things: maintaining my financial health (I was TERRIBLE with money BC); running, and something I never thought I would ever be able to do and that’s sleeping without an alarm to wake me up. I read an article about it and tried it and now I never use an alarm. I sleep so much better because I’m not anticipating the alarm and I wake up naturally. Plus I get a full 8 hours. Never thought I’d be able to do that in a million years because I was CONSTANTLY late. Now I’m the first arrive with no problem.
i've acquired some forty-odd plants throughout the pandemic, and saturday mornings are for watering, pruning, feeding, and rearranging. living alone, i think it originally started through a need to be closer to nature (especially amidst the concrete of nyc), of something to take care of, and for the lightness they can bring to a space (yes, even the cacti). i used to just pour some water in and call it good, but now i spend time with each plant, seeing what it needs, what i could do to make it happier, particularly now after a long winter. it's incredibly fulfilling to watch them grow, or not, and also to have to troubleshoot when things don't go well, so i also get to learn in the process. all of it takes me about an hour or two on saturday morning, but it's an hour i get to spend away from screens (that is, if i don't get lost in a string of youtube videos on spider mites) and cultivating a relationship with these living beings that have very much become a part of my life.
My dad and I started texting all the time. Sharing tik toks and memes and pictures of our dogs. I talk to my mom on the phone a lot and dad and I get along great but we’ve never had this kind of regular communication. It’s been fun and has opened the door to talk about more serious things (like why policing isn’t Good) and it just feels nice, especially when I think about how he is (/we are) getting old.
Over this past year I’ve found myself returning to many things I had lost track of—meditation, bird watching, nature studies—but my most favorite thing I’ve returned to is spontaneously calling friends like it’s 1983. It brings me so much cheer to be thinking of someone and to immediately try and connect. I’m never going to text first or make another phone date again.
Going on bike rides or walks whenever possible with my dad. It's so peaceful. To get away from schoolwork and speed down a hill, forgetting brakes exist, is awesome.
I started playing disc golf (badly). Prior to the pandemic, you would not find my plus sized self doing anything physical in public other than walking. Something about this last year made me grateful for my body and helped with my insecurities. I turned 50 during this time as well and I am committed to reminding myself of my strengths and the fact that I am blessed to still exist in this world. The sun, the breeze, the rain, the wind....I am noticing these things again and enjoying them.
Realized, after a long hiatus, how important writing is to me and now make time for it every week for fun and maybe also for $$ in the future.
Not overcramming my weekends with plans... Instead, I've come to really prize my weekend mornings as a time to focus on my novel writing / revising in a really leisurely and (dare I say) pleasant way! I like to brew some coffee and get back into bed with my manuscript for an hour or two before any of my "real day" can derail me. :)
In the past year, I have been foraging a lot of herbs (peppermint, lemon balm, lavender, rosemary, mugwort, and many more) and sending tea blends to friends. I'm hoping to continue doing this. The sensory experience of stripping scented herbs from their branches is such a delight.
I live with and help take care of my elderly parents. My dad is on oxygen 24/7 and in a high risk for COVID so we decided pretty early on to self-isolate. It only took me a few days to realize we needed some sort of structure or else we were going to drive each other crazy so I initiated Arts & Crafts and Storytime. Every day after lunch, which is the meal we share together, we do some sort of art related thing. I taught my parents how to make pamphlet journals that we have filled with crayon drawings and we have a binder of Sunday coloring pages. (FYI, any craft geared towards preschoolers or kindergarteners is perfect for people in their 70s: lunch bag puppets, salt dough ornaments, paper plate masks) Every evening at 8:00 we gather in the living room and I read out loud for 20-30 minutes. We started with His Dark Materials and read everything we could from that world. We've read The Monuments Men and a Civil War history and David McCullough's biography of the Wright Brothers and his history of the building of the Brooklyn Bridge. I introduced my parents to The Princess Bride and From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. We are currently reading the 3rd book of The Wildwood Trilogy. Up next is a biography of John Glenn. I know that my time with my parents is finite. This year of just the 3 of us has shown me how to be more intentional with this time.
Like Dee, I learned to forage--mostly mushrooms. The newsletter from our farm-share (the CSA share is another pandemic discovery I'm keeping) inspired me, and then I learned a lot from the book Mushrooming Without Fear, a beginner's book that teaches the easiest mushrooms to identify. I like this hobby because it's ongoing--much more to learn--and delicious. My daughters and I also got super-into long woodland walks, and looking for animals.
Self care. Reserving an hour to myself to read, sit, think, away from the computer, away from work.
A couple of things: maintaining my financial health (I was TERRIBLE with money BC); running, and something I never thought I would ever be able to do and that’s sleeping without an alarm to wake me up. I read an article about it and tried it and now I never use an alarm. I sleep so much better because I’m not anticipating the alarm and I wake up naturally. Plus I get a full 8 hours. Never thought I’d be able to do that in a million years because I was CONSTANTLY late. Now I’m the first arrive with no problem.