January Joy- Getting Unstuck
‘To miss the joy is to miss all.” -Robert Louis Stevenson I have to admit, I got a little “stuck” at the end of December and beginning of January. It was hard for me to move on after the holidays, knowing that my son would be leaving to go back to school. After all the excitement, everyday life seemed kind of… blah. I’m so glad I got past that! Yes, the holidays are over. All the decorations are gone, and my son is gone too. But instead of feeling empty, my life feels full. Here are a few things bringing me joy right now: The weather. I know… you hate me. It’s cold and gloomy up north . I know, because I lived in the midwest for a long time. But hear me out! In Florida, we really pay our dues for this kind of weather: From May through October (and sometimes November) our heat index is above 100 every single day. It’s extremely humid, and the sun is so strong it feels like it’s trying to kill you. This year, it was very warm through December and I was starting to wonder if we would get any “winter” at all. Not to worry! Our weather has been ideal- cool at night, pleasant during the day. If I can’t be happy in Florida in January, then I might as well give up and move to Canada. Luckily I’m appreciating our weather very, very much. Trail running I finally got out to my trail! Leading up to the holidays I was so busy, and then while my son was home there was always a reason why I needed (or wanted) to be home. But on Wednesday I dropped my daughter off at school and headed to the trail. I had the whole day ahead of me- no reason to hurry back home. As you can see, there’s no shade on this trail… so a cool January day is the perfect day for a trail run. Books! Books! More books! Ah, I love books so, so much. Another way in which I was stuck recently was after re-reading all the Harry Potter books, I couldn’t seem to get myself to read another book. This went on for all of November and part of December. It was crazy!!! Finally I read Rosamunde Pilcher’s Winter Solstice and just finished I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh- what a book. It’s a page-turner and if you think you know what it’s about, you’re wrong. Enough said! While I’m waiting for a couple library holds to come in, I’m reading Living With a Seal by Jesse Itzler. It’s the story of how Jesse had David Goggins come and live with him for a month to whip him into shape. And, I ordered and just received this book which I learned about from Nicole: In the introduction, Agapi describes the book as “fifty-two light posts guiding you back to yourself- one for every week of the year.” Nicole read a chapter every week for 2021, and I plan to do the same for 2022. Except I just got the book today, so I’ll read a couple chapters a week until I’m caught up. Thanks, Nicole! There are all sorts of other little things giving me joy these days- sitting in Starbucks with my tea, pulling the quilt over myself on a chilly morning at 5 am because I still have another hour to sleep, anticipating Friday night takeout (Chipotle has a new vegan chorizo!)… What are some things giving you joy now?