A dear friend of mine sent me a calendar this year that has inspirational quotes on it. This month, there’s a quote from Leo Buscaglia that says “Boredom arises from routine. Joy, wonder, rapture, arise from surprise.” Dr. Love clearly never lived through a global pandemic; boredom is part of our daily life. But, he is right. We may just have to work really hard to find some surprises. Where to begin?
- Take a Walk – Grab your mask and get out of the house. Staring at the same four walls will do nothing to ease your boredom. Another dear friend of mine (shout out to Kendra!) has been walking each day in the neighborhood and posting pictures of something interesting she sees on her Instagram feed. Fiber artist Susan Brubaker Knapp does the same, posting under the hashtag #BeautyOnMyMorningWalk. Take your phone and really look around at your neighborhood. Find something that strikes you and take a picture of it. You may just find a little bit of inspiration where you least expect it.
- Start or Participate in a Swap – Can you start a swap with some friends? Email around some new recipes to try (I’m sure you’re bored with your old standards by now!), pop a book that you’ve read in the mail to pass along, send a postcard, etc. It doesn’t need to be anything expensive, but getting a piece of mail or an idea for a new dish could be a great surprise. My quilt guild is running a UFO (Unfinished Object) Swap right now and it was a real treat to get someone else’s abandoned project in the mail. None of my UFOs interested me, but hers was new to me and it’s been fun to tackle.
- Find Something to Look Forward to – I just heard the recommendation on a podcast to spend a minute at the beginning of each day thinking of something that you can look forward to during the day. Maybe you’ll treat yourself to some extra time reading a new book or you’ll try a new recipe. Maybe you’ll look forward to talking that walk. Make sure you’ve got something, even something small, to get excited about each day. Today, I’m baking bread and I’m looking forward to that first warm piece, slathered with butter. It may not be a trip to Paris, but I can get excited about fresh bread.
Finding surprises right now may take a little more work, but it’s not impossible. Where will you find something new today? Please feel free to add your suggestions to the comments below!
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