Open-hearted joys 開開心心 93

Happy Friday, my loves!

I’ve been more absent than normal, from here, this week. Last night, I started to feel guilty about it. Today? I feel good about being more present in my real life and how I’m prioritising myself and my goals properly. After writing all about my burnout recently, it didn’t make sense to suddenly plunge myself back into spending a lot of time online again. So, I didn’t. Instead, I’ve been looking after my fitness and wellness goals, indulging in longer skincare routines, gawping at the sky and the birds and the trees, hanging out with family, and squeezing in some craft and DIY projects too. I feel alive.

There’s a lot to be said for appreciating the smaller, not necessarily finer, details of the everyday mundane. Here’s to another list of open-hearted joys, the moments that’ve woven poetry to my days, this week.

一. Fish and chips eaten on a park bench, beside the swimming ducklings.

二. Running a new 10k PB! I’m really enjoying running again, which feels great.

三. Girly Sunday afternoons on the sofa with a Caesar salad, fries and new documentary. Is there a better way to spend the weekend with your sister?

四. Welcoming in spring ‘fits to the rotation again.

五. The endlessly positive impact of a slow morning.

六. Quiet evenings of not much at all, just us, pottering around the house.

七. A sunny-then-rainy-then-hail-then-sunny afternoon at a café, making wedding moodboards for various vendors. It’s such a joy to plan our wedding, especially with our new pact of making it into a café date each time.

八. I’m making progress on two manuscripts and it feels GREAT. Honestly? Writing novels is harder than I expected, but I’m giving myself grace and not forcing it. A plus side of feeling really disillusioned by the online and offline world means that I’m spending a lot of time in my own fictional worlds instead.

九. Celebrating our year-end results at work with my colleagues.

十. The feeling of getting in bed after a day, a long day, a normal day, a good day.