I know I have previously written about or mentioned my issues with lack of daylight during the winter months.  But, today, though we’re still in the midst of winter here in MN, I have found some light/bright spots.  Read on…

• We sang the hymn, Christ Be Our Light in church on Sunday – a very favorite hymn of mine.  Google the lyrics (and, read through all the verses) and see if you don’t agree it has a powerful message.  And, the message it sends me personally is there are many people in the world with far greater problems than my measly issue with not having enough daylight.  Get over myself and get out and help others find some light!

Christ be our light! Shine in our hearts, Shine through the darkness.

• So, one of the things I am doing is volunteering at my grandsons’ school on Wednesday mornings – helping in a Kindergarten class and a 2nd grade class.  I get to help the kids paint or read or recognize their numbers and letters.  It is fun to see how some of the kids bask in the extra attention their teacher doesn’t always have time to give to them; and, I believe it also lightens the teacher’s load.
• I received an Aero-Garden by Miracle Grow as a birthday present from RC.

  

  Basically, it is a grow light and some sort of phenomenal plant food that is causing my 2 kinds of basil, mint, dill and parsley to grow so quickly I have to raise the light nearly daily.    It is great to be growing something green and useful when all outdoor plants are dormant under a foot of snow.  I don’t even need a bright window to make the plants grow – the light does all the work.

• There are places in the metropolitan area in which I live that offer indoor garden-like settings – great for mid-winter field trips to provide a taste of summer.  I spent an hour or so on Saturday wandering through the Como Zoo Conservatory in St. Paul where I was able to feel warmth and humidity reminiscent of MN summers as well as smell that wonderful earthy fragrance of plants and flowers growing.  Helpful too – it is a very bright, light place to hang out.

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  The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum also has a conservatory.  Both of these places are great for providing a respite from the dark and cold of winter.

• January and February, though they can be bitterly cold in Minnesota (thank heavens not as much as usual this year), can provide lovely, bright sunny days.  Add clean, white snow reflecting the sun’s rays and the brightness can be almost blinding…though, certainly beautiful, in my eyes.
• For Christians, Lent begins this week – that means there are only six weeks until Easter which signifies, among other things, rebirth/new life, more light, and spring!
• Lastly, we now have daylight until at least 5:30 in the afternoon.  The days are getting longer!  We’re going in the right direction.

Maybe the fact that I have been taking a Vitamin D supplement (the sunshine vitamin) all winter has helped me tolerate the darkness better this year.  Probably doesn’t hurt that I am now also retired so my stress level is greatly reduced.  I find joy in each day.

It’s Valentines Day on Sunday – find the light, make it special and show somebody how much you love and appreciate them.

(Really, let’s do that every day!)

Another new beginning – a big one!

RETIREMENT

The first day of the rest of my life, as they say.

Yikes, a bunch of events all happened at the same time – the holidays, the last week and day at work, my birthday, my sister’s death, and a 5-day trip to Southern California for the funeral.  Given all that, the acknowledgement of my retirement was put on the back burner.

So, today, a Monday, is the first day the realization of my freedom is settling in, though it’s been almost 2 weeks since my last day of work.  I can’t tell you how great last night – Sunday evening – felt knowing I didn’t have to get up early this morning to commute 38 miles one way and face whatever stressors work would throw at me.  I’m especially grateful for not having to leave the house this morning since it is -2º below zero or whatever ridiculously crazy temp it is here in Minnesota today.

But, now what?? 

I have some very vague plans of how I want to spend my time as I live out the last third of my life.  And, it is of course, uncertain if it really will turn out to be a third of my life.  Sometimes I wish I had a crystal ball to determine just how many years I do have left.  With the recent death of my sister, I am aware it is now my generation’s time to start cashing it in.  A sobering realization!  I really do want to make the most of whatever time I have left on this earth.

During these last few months as I pondered my impending retirement and what I would do to fill my time, I thought in terms of a schedule – a plan to guide me through the days of the week.  You know, like, Mondays – laundry, Tuesdays – special projects, Wednesdays – volunteer work, Thursdays – errand day, Fridays – clean the house, Saturdays – time for fun activities…movies, sporting events, gatherings with family & friends, and Sundays – recognize the Sabbath and do nothing involving work, a time for contemplation, reading and meditation.

But, the likelihood of sticking to such a rigid schedule is probably ridiculous.  (Though, I am doing laundry today – Monday – as I write this!)  Perhaps it would be better to fly by the seat of my pants and see where I land each day.  I won’t say I’ll go where the wind blows me, as we all know I try to ignore the wind, my least favorite weather element.

I don’t know how this is all going to play out but I am extremely grateful that I have the opportunity to choose to go with the flow and see what happens, or to actually re-design my life.  And, that really is the essence of what retirement should be – a time to relax and just be, but be able to also do whatever I want!

My friend, Mary, from one of my book groups told me about a Quaker saying that seems appropriate to give as an answer when people ask me what I’m going to do now that I’m retired.

I will proceed as the way opens!

Seems like that would be a good mantra to adopt.

I would love to hear how any of you have dealt with the new gift of time afforded you by your retirement.  Please feel free to leave comments below.  For now, I will try out this schedule I have created and see how it works – no promises that I will keep it,  it could change tomorrow!

We’ve likely all been admonished by someone, or by something we have read to take care of ourselves – physically and mentally.  In that regard, the latest buzz words are self-care.  In one of my early blog posts I wrote about taking care of my vessel – my body, the ship that takes me through life – listing some of the things I do for my physical well-being.

But, what about just plain being good to ourselves – allowing ourselves to experience abundance, and creating some joy in our lives?

At any time of the year, but maybe even more so now as we head into the busyness of the holiday season, we all deserve to treat ourselves to a little luxury.  What that luxury is will be different for each person, but the idea is to experience a joyful feeling and perhaps, ease stress and its negative effects on the body.

You may think luxuries are the things in life that cost a lot of money…not necessarily so.  However, if you are so inclined and can afford it, go ahead and buy the Lamborghini if you think it will make you happy. (I don’t know if that vehicle is still made, and I don’t know if that is how you spell it – but, hopefully, you get my idea.)

Here is a list of a few things I consider luxuries and that make me happy – you see they don’t cost much…

• tossing green or black olives in my salad
• eating fresh raspberries, even if they are coming all the way from S. America at this time of year and cost $4.99 a box
• lighting a candle while I cook dinner – especially at this dark time of year!
• enjoying a “good” bottle of wine - by that I mean one that costs over the $8-10 normal limit I have for spending on a bottle
• using a new box of fluorescent colored pencils as I “create” in my adult coloring book; see a previous post about enjoying coloring like a kid again 
• indulging in one square of a dark chocolate bar for my after-lunch treat
• visiting my massage therapist every 4 weeks for an all-over body massage – ok, so this is a more expensive luxury
• drinking my tea out of a pretty china cup instead of an old mug 
• taking time for a little break – playing solitaire or Lexulous on the internet, checking the latest Facebook or Instagram posts, or coloring with my new pencils
• eating chocolate chip cookies straight out of the oven – mind you, these were made from frozen dough already formed into the cookie shape, so no work on my part; AND, I am not going to eat all of these in one sitting! 

Many of us are not used to being good to ourselves.  People pleasers like myself think we need to make everyone else happy before we indulge ourselves, and therefore, may not often take time for the little things that can bring us joy.  Enjoying luxuries is a learned practice – BUT, it can be done and the rewards are great!

I’d love to hear what you consider to be luxuries – AND, do you indulge in them?  Feel free to share your comments below.

Remember those lyrics from 1988?  They were from a song of the same name written and performed a cappella by Bobby McFerrin.  You might remember the song from the movie, Cocktail, which starred Tom Cruise.

I’m thinking of that famous (is it famous?) phrase today, because March 20 is International Day of Happiness - who knew?  I must have read of its existence somewhere because I added it to my list of potential blog topics.  I don’t remember the magazine or website where it was mentioned.  (I really need to start noting from where I get my inspiration snippets so I don’t have to wonder when I come upon the ideas on my list at a later date!)

At any rate, I Googled International Day of Happiness and learned it has been celebrated throughout the world (really?) since it was established by the UN General Assembly in 2012.  I won’t bore you with the entire UN resolution, but basically it recognizes the human pursuit of happiness and wants the day to promote the well-being of people around the world.  Therefore, the UN is inviting people everywhere to observe this special day.

So, how do we find happiness and ease worry?  A worthy endeavor, I think.

Here are some ideas –

Set your cares aside for awhile and go out for ice cream.

The second verse of the Don’t Worry Be Happy song says –

“In every life we have some trouble, but when you worry, you make it double!”

I think I’ve shared with you somewhere on this blog site that my husband has nominated me (or maybe appointed me) to the all-world worry team.  I admit, I have earned that distinction.  But, I do know that diversions are good to get my mind off of whatever the worry-of-the-day might be; so, I’m all for going out for ice cream!  It makes me happy.

I’ve also written about my love for watching movies – another activity that makes me happy, and which is a great escape.    Last night I found the movie, In Her Shoes, on Direct TV.  Yes, I have watched it before at least a couple of times, but it has been awhile, so I watched it again…a great diversion from balancing my check book which has a way of causing me worry.  (Is there ever enough money?)

The beginning indications of spring arriving here in Minnesota bring happiness to me.  Tulips appearing for sale at the flower stands, snow melting and warmer temps all cause me to smile; hopefully, some of you have that same reaction.  Oh, and more hours of daylight are a huge relief to me!

It really goes back to just recognizing that small, everyday “good” things occurring in life can provide happiness.  (Remember the gratitude journal from my last post?)

Here are some simple activities that are making me happy today –

• enjoying a clean house (sometimes mine is clean)
• getting an “all’s well” check up at the dentist
• watching a very content cat lazing in the sunshine
• spending an evening with book club friends
• anticipating a meal at a restaurant touting authentic New Orleans cuisine
• diving into a new issue of Oprah magazine

I’m sure you get the idea.  Finding happiness is really all about approaching life with a good attitude.  And, surrounding yourself with happy people doesn’t hurt either.

On Wikipedia (who doesn’t love Wikipedia?), I found a list of several organizations supporting the recognition of International Day of Happiness, and offering various activities for celebrating the day.  If you’re interested check it out.

So, celebrate on March 20.

BUT, I think we should CREATE HAPPINESS in our lives every day!  Are you with me?

I’m looking for ideas to pull me (and maybe some of you) out of the mid-winter doldrums.  I know I’m not alone in needing a solution.  What are things you do to keep from having the blues?

A person’s lack of energy and motivation to do anything at this time of year may be caused by the lack of light exposure during these short winter days.  It’s called S.A.D. – seasonal affective disorder.  I’m sure that is my problem.  On my work days, I drive to work in the dark; and, it turns dark shortly after I arrive home in the late afternoon.  I work in the lower level of a building where there are no windows, but we have special skylights that bring in natural light.  The natural light is nice, but if I don’t wander upstairs during the day I really don’t see the sunlight or even know what the weather is doing outside.

You’d think knowing the cause of my malaise would help me combat it, but so far, that is not the case!

Some of the methods I do employ to try and cheer up are:

• making a daily listing of several things for which I am grateful – either in my gratitude journal or at least, in my mind.  In truth, I am a very blessed person so I could fill pages of my journal with things I am thankful for…SO, WHY AM I BLUE?
• taking time to sit under one of those special lights that are supposed to imitate outdoor light (phototherapy).  Now, the only problem with this process is if I spend time under the light too late in the day, it must mess with my melatonin and I can’t get to sleep at bedtime.  So, I need to use the light during morning hours which are not convenient on my work days.
• walking outside instead of using the indoor track.  I try to get outside a couple of times a week but avoid walking on dark roadways so again, my opportunities are somewhat restricted.  Though it’s not always sunny, I think just getting into real daylight and fresh air is helpful…SHOULD BE, DON’T YOU THINK?
• getting enough protein in my diet which provides tryptophan which is necessary to make serotonin which has something to do with helping people be happy.  Way too scientific for me to comprehend, but I’m willing to try anything.

I know this is a temporary condition for me.  It seems I have the same lack of gumption each year about this time.  However, I would sure love to discover a way to overcome it.  (I can’t afford to move to a tropical island for the winter!)

Is anybody out there a fellow sufferer, and if so, do you have any great ideas for overcoming the doldrums?

I’d also be curious to know if those of you lucky enough to either live in warmer climates than Minnesota, or who spend your winters in sunny places also suffer from S.A.D.?  I would love to hear from you.

Meanwhile, I will strive to find something more cheerful to write about before I sit down to create another post.  One piece of advice I have read is to surround yourself with happy, upbeat people – I probably haven’t fit that bill for you with this post…sorry!