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health

Reflections on 2020: The Longest Year

December 23, 2020 by Vanessa Whiteside Leave a Comment

When I think back on the last year, my first thought is “throw it out with the garbage!” It was not a year any of us want to repeat. Turning the page to better days sounds ideal, yet each day can be challenging. Listening to the news can feel like a weighted blanket of doom these days. For the sake of not sounding like a total Debbie Downer, there is an end to this madness eventually. I see the light at the end of the tunnel.

footprints

I don’t have the quick answer for how to manage stress during a pandemic. Many health and wellness articles give advice ranging from self-care routines to cocktail recipes and everything in between. The answer is somewhere in there. For me, I’ve taken it day by day and sometimes hour by hour, and what I’ve learned is that 2020 required me to get quiet and listen to my thoughts. To hear the good, the bad, and the sometimes noisy ones. It’s been a process, but what I’ve learned during this time has been immeasurable.

A few reflections:

A BUSY DAY SPEEDS UP THE HOURS

I was already a person who woke up before the sun and made a to-do list for the day. When we received stay-at-home recommendations, I saw it as an opportunity to tackle tasks. Of course there were moments of boredom, but I occupied my time staying happily busy. I grew a garden, cooked new recipes, and even went as far as chalking the neighborhood with positive messages. Staying busy sped up the hours.

QUIET EQUATES TO PRODUCTIVITY

Some people thrive in loud, buzzing work environments. I’m definitely not one of them. I write and strategize for a living and need to be able to hear myself think. When I’m in the zone and someone interrupts my stream of consciousness to talk about themselves, it halts my creativity. Last year, I had gone as far as using noise cancelling headphones at the office. Working remotely has been a blessing that I relish, and to be frank, my writing craft and productivity are better for it.

A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP IS KEY

Anything that I can’t seem to solve or that truly frustrates me is cured by a good night’s sleep. When my mood is exacerbated by the day’s news headlines about the pandemic or the economy, I’ve learned that it’s best just to get some rest and start fresh the next day. I admire people who say “never go to bed mad.” Clearly, they’ve never argued with me about something. Ha!

ALCOHOL IS LIKE A LOUD FRIEND AT A PARTY

I appreciate wine. I love craft beer. Somewhere along the way last year I began drinking too often. Alcohol helped me transition after work to the evening hours, joined me on the weekends, and well, for nearly most occasions. Like a fun friend you take with you as a guest to a party, alcohol eventually had too much fun and embarrassed me. Today, I’ve cut way back on my drinking and I’m better for it.

KINDNESS ENDURES

A tumultuous year of political differences, race riots, and economic downturn hurt a lot of people in 2020. Showing kindness to others was something I could do to make it a little bit better. From a simple act of donating to a charity to smiling through my mask at a stranger in a parking lot, I did what I could to be a nicer person. Because at the end of the day, it’s not what people say that you remember. It’s how they made you feel.

The year 2020 taught me to zero in on what it means to listen to my instincts and support my passions. To be a better version of me.

What have you learned about yourself in the last year? What lessons has 2020 taught you?

Filed Under: Lifestyle Tagged With: 2020, COVID-19, footprints, goals, health, life, life lessons, lifestyle, pandemic, productivity, reflection, self-care, sleep, wellness, work, year

20 Ways to Be Kind to Yourself

January 8, 2018 by Vanessa Leave a Comment

So often I read articles about how to pay-it-forward and be kind to others, something you know I appreciate! However, we often neglect to be kind to ourselves. It’s like the airplane oxygen mask rule: put the oxygen mask on yourself first so that you can assist others. If we’re not healthy and not taking care of ourselves, then we can’t present the world the best version of ourself to aide others.

Why don’t we take time for ourselves?

It’s simple. We allow the world’s demands to distract us from turning the focus on ourselves. Of course, there are events in our lives that require us to act and live selflessly. That’s okay as long as we understand that life is a balance. At the end of the day, we are no good to anyone else if we have nothing left to give.

When I take time for myself to relax, to learn or to just be still — I’m a better person to those who I connect with in the world. So, when was the last time you took a hour to give back to yourself?

If you’re like me and often need a reminder to prioritize myself, here are 20 Ways to Be Kind to Yourself.

  1. Take a long shower or enjoy a hot bath. Relax.
  2. Prepare your favorite meal even if it’s not what others want to eat for dinner.
  3. Use your vacation days from work. Americans don’t use provided vacation days, according to Forbes. Learn why. 
  4. Subscribe to a delivery service like Stitch Fix or order your household supplies from Amazon. Give yourself a break from shopping!
  5. Go for the appetizer. You always turn down the restaurant server’s suggestion for a pre-meal bite. Stop denying yourself the queso!
  6. Upgrade your shoe game or wardrobe.
  7. Make an appointment for a massage or make-up application.
  8. Read a self-help book or an inspirational story.
  9. Meet a friend for lunch. Conversations with friends are a vital to understanding oneself.
  10. Buy yourself flowers or a nice bottle of wine.
  11. Meditate.
  12. Go to bed an hour early every night for a week.
  13. Eat a nourishing breakfast.
  14. Yoga. Downward dog anyone?
  15. Allow yourself free time for a hobby you’ve put on the back burner.
  16. Try an at-home facial.
  17. Gently rub your temples.
  18. Eliminate the feeling of being rushed in the morning before work. Pack your lunch the night before.
  19. Dedicate one evening every week to watching your favorite show or movie.
  20. Get a babysitter and take yourself on a date.

How have you taken time for yourself recently? Tell me in the comments section below!

 

Photo: Pixabay

Filed Under: Lifestyle Tagged With: care, health, inspire, kind, kindness, mental health, random act of kindness, self, self-care, self-help, wine, yoga

50 Ways to Break Up the Monotony of Your Life: A List of New Experiences to Try

August 13, 2017 by Vanessa Leave a Comment

Recently I lost a close family member to cancer and during that time of grieving, I was reminded how fleeting life can be and that I wanted to seize every moment moving forward. I vowed to try something new, to push myself to show up to life every day.

My life had become a routine of commuting to work, sitting in a cubicle, and then coming home and repeating the same evening activities almost daily. Do your work days all seem to be a blur and before you know it you’re waking up on Saturday uninspired? I can relate.

So, I promised myself that I would begin to incorporate new experiences into my day to break up the monotony, force my brain to fire off new circuits to positively impact my life and my health. Some days I wake up and already know what new experience I will have on that particular day and other days I refer to a bucket list of sorts saved in my phone notes. Either way, I’m having a blast learning about myself, firing up my brain, and sharing these experiences with others. I’m feeling rejuvenated and I’m showing up for life, a more delightful one.

Image: Pixabay

You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land; there is no other life but this.” – Henry David Thoreau

We only get one life and I plan to live mine to the fullest. The following list is made up of activities I recently experienced or that I hope to try soon. Not all of these experiences require much money or a lot of time required. Perhaps you would like to stretch the boundaries of your comfort zone and try one or all of them too?

  1. Go to brunch with your parent at a restaurant you’ve never tried.
  2. Drive a different route to work.
  3. Call up a family member you haven’t spoken to in years (or that you only text on occasion) and ask them about their day.
  4. Reach out to a co-worker or friend who works nearby and asked them to meet you for lunch.
  5. Volunteer on a committee, for your church or kid’s school or for a neighborhood association.
  6. Say yes when a friend invites you to travel to the lake, go camping, or site-seeing outside of town. Better yet, ask them to go with you.
  7. Eat local. Sip on a coffee at a local cafe or try the seasonal beer at a brewery.
  8. Style your hair differently than you did yesterday.
  9. Change up your fragrance. Wear new perfume or cologne.
  10. Pull your bicycle out of the garage and take it for a spin around the neighborhood after dinner one evening.
  11. Visit the library, walk over to a category of books that interest you and close your eyes. Run your hand across the shelf of books until you decide to stop. Remove whatever book your hand landed on and check it out to read it.
  12. Introduce yourself to a stranger and make small talk.
  13. Tour a neighborhood in your city that you never explore.
  14. Smile and say hello to a stranger on the street. You might find you have something in common with them.
  15. Don’t just sunbathe while at the lake or pool. Run and jump in the deep end with careless abandon. “Cannonball!”
  16. Desk yoga.
  17. Paint and sip wine at an art studio.
  18. Visit a festival and eat at a food truck. Ever try bbq nachos? Curry chicken?
  19. Eat your lunch away from your workplace at a park.
  20. Try an adult coloring book.
  21. Learn new skills by taking a webinar.
  22. Grab some friends and sign everyone up to try an escape room challenge.
  23. Experience a local seasonal activity like riding in a horse-drawn sled at Christmas, making s’mores with the Girl Scouts on National S’mores Day or grab a map and navigate a corn maze at a pumpkin patch.
  24. Wear colored socks to work.
  25. Pick up a new hobby that doesn’t involve using technology.
  26. Create a date jar with ideas for date night fun. Draw a new idea from the jar this weekend.
  27. Buy yourself flowers.
  28. Travel anywhere you’ve never been before.
  29. Throw a party that coincides with a random food holiday.
  30. Follow a recipe for food you normally buy. No churn vanilla ice cream anyone?
  31. Visit a tourist attraction or museum in your own city.
  32. Pick fruit in an orchard.
  33. Point the car west and just drive.
  34. Stop and talk to your neighbors when you see them outside.
  35. Always go to the movie theater? Try a dramatic play production instead at a local theater.
  36. Lasertag. Paintball. Water balloon fights.
  37. Grow vegetables or purchase them from a local farmer instead of buying them from a store.
  38. Walk into a toy store and buy a toy to assemble yourself like a puzzle or box of Legos.
  39. Try a different way of exercising or use a different exercise machine at the gym.
  40. Watch wildlife anywhere but in your own neighborhood.
  41. Take a new car for a test drive.
  42. Walk your friend or neighbor’s dog.
  43. Host a potluck or food contest amongst friends at your home. Who can make the tastiest beef jerky, mac-n-cheese, or pizza?
  44. Let a local artist or friend sketch your portrait.
  45. Get a henna tattoo.
  46. Celebrate your city or town’s birthday. Take in the sites and buy cupcakes to celebrate.
  47. Try a Pinterest DIY project.
  48. Listen to a different radio station all day long.
  49. Take a tour of the city from the air.
  50. Do anything counter to your normal routine and when a friend of family member makes a suggestion to do something you’re about to reject, say “yes!”

Have an idea of something I should try? Challenge me by leaving your idea in the comments section below!

lifestyle choices

Filed Under: Lifestyle Tagged With: active, activities, adult, boredom, bucket list, carpe diem, celebrate, create, DIY, do it yourself, family, fun, games, hacks, health, hobby, ideas, life, lifestyle, list, living, monotony, mood, routine, skills, things to do

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Hello! I'm Vanessa. Welcome to One Delightful Life, a blog created to add more delight to your life with delicious recipes, travel destinations, and lifestyle improvement ideas. Thanks for exploring my blog!

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