...and finally, one sunday during which i feel completely comfortable at home. it's funny ... last night i was invited to a friend's fabulous housewarming party, but i almost didn't go ... it was too tempting to stay home and knit for hours, feeling at last at peace within this environment i've spent weeks, months perhaps, creating. at last.
i think the above, combined with better vitamins and regular yoga (THREE classes this week, with a fourth one tonight!), have made my mood better and energy more. for this i am grateful to the earth which grounds me (namaste) and to those mysterious forces which are always gathered round us, whispering their love ....
so today will be a lovely combination of reading, knitting, listening to weekly jazz on the radio, bread baking, possibly pizza making, (oh i also have to shop for a printer online, i decided to do it this way rather than face the dings and zings and overwhelming fluorescent stimulation of a store like best buy ... always makes me feel a little nauseous, anxious and dizzy), and letter writing, before i head to restorative yoga later tonight.
This month, I may disappear under the radar a bit. I've given it mainly to myself, to work hard at my graduate Montessori work, because I know when April's gorgeous weather hits the outdoors and picnics and light times will call ... two things I'm mainly looking forward to in March are my rescheduled candle party and a Montessori conference where I'm hoping to pick up some great used materials for my future classroom.
After I left the party last night, for some reason I was feeling very homesick and missing great friends, so I went home and laid on a couch for a bit, then picked up the great book "Instant Karma" -- 8,879 ways to give yourself and others good fortune right now. I'm thinking I should share some of these ideas from time to time. One was to put a thirty-day moratorium on spending beyond anything but the absolute essentials (food, bills, etc.). I may try this for march, with the exception being the montessori conference. I also will probably slow down with the new recipes every one or two weeks -- it'll probably be simple, hearty veg/grain based meals for a while while i turn the focus inward and hopefully find the strength and perseverance i need to get a good chunk of my work done this month.
One more thing I wanted to mention was that I am going to have my very first giveaway!! It so happened that I got to see the author of a very good book be interviewed for public radio ... her name is Elizabeth Gilbert, a lovely, radiant woman, the woman who wrote Eat, Pray, Love. Well ... I've purchased an autographed copy of the book, so I have no more use for my former paperback .... except to pass it along (with the front cover gently bent) to you! And maybe I'll stick another goodie or two in there, just for you. So .... leave me a comment with some great advice for living a life more simply, and I'll close the comments by, say, tuesday night. So ... comment away, friends!!
here she is, answering questions ... i wasn't that far but still zoomed in a lot to get her
my old copy of the book
I'll leave you with a few more pictures from the past week. Namaste.
my new shopping basket, with net bag from blogger "colors outside the lines" ... check her etsy shop out for these lovely net bags!
i asked them to craft a story about their pets. (well, it was actually their story idea)
i've been nursing a sore throat from postnasal drip for a week ... i finally started taking some homeopathic stuff last night (which worked better than claritin, yay!) and this tea has apparently helped, too ... that lump in my throat feeling (pretty painful) is pretty much gone this morning. There is something to be said for holistic healing, folks. ...
saturday night dinner: homemade sweet n sour seitan, and banana bread. yum.
lovely bottle of wine i found .... "Root" ... for putting down roots. This was my housewarming gift.
lovely house, lovely music, lovely time. you can see why it made me lonely for my good friends to share it with! i feel this kind of thing is the life i've craved all along.
peace and happy week to you.
karen
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What a treat to get to enjoy the live music. I haven't had something like that around me in... too long.
ReplyDeleteAs for a simpler life, I think you are already heading in the right direction: knowing yourself and your limits is key. Putting up boundaries where they need to be for YOU - not where other think (our you think others think) they "ought" to be. Being gentle with yourself. Good, whole foods and gentle healing methods. Do one thing at a time as often as you can (said the multi-tasking mama). But again, just knowing yourself and honoring your limits. That seems to cover most of the bases for me! :)
Karen! I'm so excited you got re-usable veggie bags. I just ordered some last week on Etsy and can't wait for them to arrive. I was going to send you the link, but you're already ahead of me. It was actually your blog that got me thinking more and more about things like that, asking myself how I can cut down on wasteful products. There is a package on it's way to you. I think I sent it out Friday.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I would like to enter your contest, as I have not yet read this book. My best advice for a simple life is to start with each moment, be present and aware and listen. That, to me, is simplicity at its finest.
thanks, bonnie, i love packages! I know you'll adore the bags ... i get compliments every time i go to the store ; ) i have a package in the works for you, too .... but not quite ready to send it just yet.
ReplyDeletebe well!
Hi Karen,
ReplyDeleteYour post sounds so positive and uplifting. you can tell you're really settling into your life right now. I'm also glad you made the effort to go to yours friends house warming. Like you, I often just want to stay home, but I always I enjoy myself when I get together with friends. Even when we love our home, we need to make sure we maintain our friendships.
Hope you continue with another great week ahead.
Libby