With all of our time-saving devices, kitchen gadgets, phones, apps, tablets, and technologies, you’d think we’d have more leisure time than any generation in history … but as we all know, nothing could be further from the truth. Today’s post is dedicated to seven beautiful things worth slowing down for. We hope you get inspired to unplug a little and savor your day in tactile and sensual ways. Here we go:
BAKING BREAD FROM SCRATCH
Nothing smells more beautiful than fresh bread baking in the oven. Try skipping the store bought stuff (and all the weird, added ingredients!) and baking your own. The stirring and slow kneading and rising and eating will engage each of your senses and remind you of the time and love it takes to make a food staple so simple and satisfying.
SEWING BY HAND
Have something to mend? Eye-ing a Pinterest DIY? Sew it by hand! Putting your full attention on what you’re sewing will help clear and calm your mind, and when you’re all done, you’ll always have that thing you made (or fixed instead of throwing away!)
CULTIVATING A GARDEN
Don’t let cooling temperatures keep you from enjoying fresh herbs and flowers. Indoor plants bring literal life and air into your home. And getting to nurture and tend to your indoor garden will remind you of the daily nurture and care your heart and body need to thrive as well.
READING BOOKS ALOUD
Remember how lovely it was to be read to as a child? And how much you looked forward to story time? Reading aloud to a loved one (or even to yourself) can be so deeply pleasurable. Hearing the words can stop your mind from wandering and transport you even more deeply into the world of the story – someone else’s world and someone else’s life. And sometimes that’s the best way to get out of a funk in your own!
HAND WRITING LETTERS
When was the last time you got a handwritten letter in the mail? … I know. I can’t remember either. And how lovely would that be? Give that gift to a friend or family member. It’s amazing how your thoughts start to crystallize and organize when you sit down to express them. It’s like free therapy! And the perfect chance to love and encourage and express your appreciation for whomever you’re writing to.
SETTING THE TABLE
Even if it’s just you tonight. Or if your family’s eating carry-out. Setting the table can turn a rushed-feeling-gorge-fest into a meaningful memory. It’s a simple, little way to communicate your love and care to the people you’re eating with (or even to yourself!) I once heard a master-homemaker say that our hospitality begins with the ones we live with. If you’d set out fresh flowers and cloth napkins for guests, start doing that your family! They’ll be sure to feel your love.
EATING & ONLY EATING
How to Actually Finally change, finding internal motivation
Tied closely to the previous practice is one so obvious it eludes us sometimes – eating and only eating. For your next meal, turn off the TV, put your phone on airplane mode (unless it’s streaming nice music!), clear the bills and work papers away where you can’t see them and then eat. Look at your food. Smell it. Taste it. Savor it. Be thankful for it. Enjoy.
Hope you’re inspired to slow down and enjoy your days in these ways. They may take more time than the quicker alternatives, but it’ll be time well spent.
