Hello Bookworms,
I hope everyone is doing well. As best as we can be doing given the circumstances depending on what part of the world you live in. There’s so much going on out there. Which leads me to this blog post. For the most part I’ve been sticking to book reviews and my series called Writing Road Blocks. Prior to those two series I posted random stories, poems, or thoughts. I’ve been more consistent in the past year with posting about twice a month. I want to try increasing my posts by adding another topic to talk about.
The cool thing about writing in a series type format is that what the title says, is what you will be reading. There will be no bait clicking with titles. I’ll make them clear so that you as the reader can decide if you want to read it or not. Maybe, as the reader you’re only interested in the my Writing Road Blocks Series or maybe you only want to read the book reviews. I like that because it’s like watching different TV shows that are on the same channel at different times. If you compare cable or streaming to how I’m trying to post these blogs. Only I don’t know if this topic will be just one post or if it will turn into a series. I kind of want it to be a series because I think it would be healthy to indulge in positive uplifting words and things that make us feel joy. To me, that’s one of the most important things in this world right now.
Joy holds no color, no judgment, it can be contagious, and its aura is beautiful. Joy is important and a lot of times it comes with its best friend hope. When you are joyful, you’re hopeful. I must say that with all the You Tube viewing I’m doing I’ve noticed something. A lot of people are no longer joyful, lots if not everyone seem to have no hope in our future. Although that is true, it breaks my heart.
All of these changes and issues we see going on in the world are all beyond our control with the exception of caring for our environment. That last one is on us. Honestly, we have no control on what the politicians are doing. We can vote and hope they do what they said but we have no control. We have no control over the weather. We have no control with what happens to our jobs, if we get laid off or not. We have no control over many things in our lives. We only have control over how we choose to handle those events. We can use that analogy for everything we are dealing with in our lives.
I know, I know. Things look bad out there. Gas prices, war, violence, lay offs, fraud, political corruption, sex trafficking, and so much more. The list can go on and on. When you look at it as a whole it’s depressing, it’s terrible, and yes it appears as if everything is hopeless.
Joy and hope come from within. Forgive me as I’m not trying to downplay the issues you have or what you’re dealing with. Hear me out, joy and hope come from with us. We’ve already determined we don’t have control over lots of things that are happening right now. BUT… We have control over how we choose to feel no matter how bleak things look.
It’s okay to be sad, to cry, to get angry; but it’s also okay to decide to move on and not be sad anymore while making difficult decisions due to circumstances beyond our control. I’m not saying be happy, no. We can accept something without being fully happy and fully sad about it. It is in that moment that acceptance can take place and with that comes hope for change. Hope for better. While you as the individual make decisions that strive for change give yourself the ability to hope. The ability to be joyful.
How can you be joyful during hard times you ask? Do something you love in your sadness, even if it’s hard to do. Now I’m not telling you to spend money. Find something to do, something you love that doesn’t cost anything. Some people like to take walks. Put your ear buds in your ears and dive into a podcast, your favorite sound track, an audiobook, anything you want to listen to. Turn it on, enjoy your walk. If it’s cold take your favorite hot drink with you. If it’s hot, take your favorite ice cold drink. Walk by your favorite parts of your neighborhood and say hello to any neighbors outside. If there’s sunshine out, welcome it, whether it’s hot or cold outside. The sun’s rays offers vitamins our bodies absorb. Walking is just one example, if you love animals to the point that they bring you so much joy, volunteer at your local animal shelter. Offer a couple of hours a week and watch it change your life. If you like history, check out your local museums, planetarium, or the library. Believe it or not there’s lots of dvd’s in the library that are history related. That costs zero dollars. Now the museum and planetarium probably charge a small fee. Do you have a Botanical Gardens near you? If so, go for a walk there in the Spring and Fall. It’s renewing. Fishing, relaxes and calms the spirit of a nature lover. I could keep sitting here thinking of ideas forever. The point is we need a break.
We need a break from the politics, from the violence, from the judgement, the struggle, and the pain. It’s real out here for so many of us. Why do I care? Because I’m human, because we are the same, because I think we need to be helping each other, showing each other love, so we can ultimately heal. We as a country, and a society, as a whole, we need to heal.
We can start with healing inside of ourselves first, so then we can help others. I say this with concern and love, please do something that brings you joy. Take the time to think about it. Once you figured out what you want to do schedule it once a week, every two weeks, or even once a month. You can schedule this time when you want. Plan it and stick to it. Our mindsets as humans need to strengthen. We need to think clearer so we can better discern what is going on around us.
This is something that I personally am working on. I read a lot, write, blog, paint, and I’m teaching myself to sketch. I like to work on puzzles, we have a table in my home dedicated for working on puzzles. It’s liberating to let go of what’s going on around you. To completely tune out and turn off. There’s power and control in that.
Until next time Bookworms, stay safe and stay positive.
M.C. Addington 