{ Mindful Housework }

 

 Song from a Secret Garden 

 

The warm temperatures have dropped dramatically.  What looked like warm Spring coming in to say hi the past two weeks, has snuck back into 30 degree weather, windy and rain.

As I sit here on the couch, wrapped in my robe, the wind is howling outside, the skies are a dark gray and the tiniest of rain drops pitter patter on the driveway.  It seems like old man winter is holding on for dear life, grasping at every bit of cold, not wanting to let go.  Such is this battle every year, Spring and Winter competing to the bitter end.

I won't say I enjoy the drastic change in temperatures again, but I do love a good thunderstorm, the kind that brings a darkness to the home that only soft lit candles can thrive in.

 

 

I have gone about my day with a purpose, being mindful of every chore I encountered.  It isn't just about cleaning, or doing laundry, but the heart with which you do it, and intent, and the time to be mindful of what you are achieving in that moment.

 

Housework is just housework, unless you approach it with the mindset that it's your way of contributing to your family.  A way of providing a safe place, a warm bed for weary bodies and tummy filling good food to nourish your soul.

 

I once was told that this simple kind of life is a great idea, but not attainable especially for those who work outside the home.  I understand that, after all, being a homemaker as I am, my life is within these four walls, and so it gives me more time to focus, to go slow, to sip coffee and read a book, or bake a cake, or garden or whatever it is that I want to do.

 

But just because I am home full time, it doesn't mean that those who work outside the home, can't live it as well.   

 

Slow, soft, mindful living starts within! 

 

When we choose to project the quiet inside, to our outside world, it affects everything around us, and in a way brings others to this more calm, laid back, and slower pace of living.

A great way to start living it, is perhaps by surrounding yourself with those people and things, that will encourage you to stay on that path.  I will be honest and tell you that save for myself, no one else in my life lives this way, or even shows a want to do it.  So for me, I choose to find inspiration outside, and being that I'm a very visual person, that inspiration comes through videos on YouTube of like minded women.

Slow living, quiet vlogs, just lives being shared through few words and lots of beautiful scenery.  At the moment, I follow a lot of channels that share their daily slow life from Italy, France, Norway, Germany, England.  

 

Many times, when I am doing the usual cleaning up around the house, I think about my great grandmother Ema.  I fondly remember her with her apron, the pocket always filled with random tidbits, things she needed like her handkerchief, and also things she picked up as she went about her day.

She did everything with love, often cooking meals for 15 people at a time since we always had a big family.

There are memories and moments that are forever etched in my mind and heart.  The smile on her face as she prepared green beans, or peeled a potato.  She would often have me help her peel and then spent the entire time saying "you're taking off more potato than skin Sandra", or "don't cut so deep, softly run your knife just under the skin".  I would often be amazed at how she would start at one point of the potato, and just like magic would end at the other, the potato peel a long swirly line just hanging off the tip of the knife.

She never complained, never said she was sick of doing the same things every day.  She just went about her homemaking chores with a joy in her heart and a leap in her step.  She passed away a few months after I moved to the USA, at the age of 96.  To the end, she still monitored everyone and the running of the household, often giving out orders from her bed.  What an incredible woman and what an incredible love of homemaking she passed down to me.

I wish I could say that my daughter is following in my footsteps, but when it comes to homemaking, she isn't, and that's ok.  I feel that society has taught our daughters that homemaking is something to look down on, that independent women should not be in the home cooking and cleaning, that it's beneath them.  

Did I try to instill this same passion in her?  Absolutely, but in a world of social media and outside influences, I often feel as parents we are left with our hands tied in a sense.  What we teach at home, is often forgotten beyond these walls.

However, now that she is in her own apartment, she often calls me to find out how to do this, or that, or how to cook a certain dish.  Slowly, but surely, she is coming around to understanding how important it is to care for our homes.

I often get many messages on my Instagram, from friends and other women, telling me how much I inspire them or motivate them.  That for me is the best compliment I could ever receive, because I don't look at what I'm doing as influencing anyone, but rather sharing my life and how happy it makes me.  If that inspires others to live a simpler slower life, it's a wonderful thing.

Anyway, I started this post yesterday afternoon, but then got sidetracked with dinner and the night routine and ended up leaving it until this morning, to finish.  

It is currently 7:28 am, and I'm going to sit in bed a little longer, I've been up since 4:45 am, and since it's Saturday I'll take it easy, start my morning slowly and then move on to what needs to be done.

What's on the agenda for today?

• More housecleaning
• Trip to the store to restock on veggies for the week (I am going through a lot of vegetables lately)
• Work on my crochet a bit more
• Start a new book
• Make some cute fabric chickens for Springs
• Continue watching Shogun
• Watch some period dramas (really wanting to watch something a la Jane Austen)

Hope you all have a fantastic Saturday friends.

{ Soft Living }

For many years, I have tried to practice the art of slow living.  

 

I found that I wasn't connecting with the modern world, it was too busy, too chaotic, too full of things that I didn't want in my life or in my soul.  I used to do these blog posts talking about contentment and what it felt like to be filled with joy for your life, your surroundings, and the situations you were living in.

 

The modern days we live in feel cold, disconnected and somewhat jarring to my well being.  

 

I often pull back into my little shell, within my homey walls and focus on living here, cleaning, homemaking and living a slow life.

 

The other day I came upon the phrase, Soft Living.  It intrigued me and so I went in search of it's meaning.  It turns out that it was first used by a Nigerian influencer community, and it means:

to reject hustle culture and to live a life without struggle and stress.

Yes, my soul screamed a big resounding yes.  There is too much around us that constantly brings stress and days filled with struggles of every kinda imaginable. Some things are out of our control, but most times we can say no, we can pull back, we can remove ourselves or the situations, people, objects causing the interference.

 

Books have been pulled out and enjoyed while I listen to soft music in the background.  I especially love listening to soundtracks from some of my favorite period dramas.  I find it just sets the mood to sit back, relax and allow yourself to travel within the pages of a book.

 

I've also spent a lot of time organizing and pottering around with things.  Not having to rush out the door, and really being able to devote myself to being the homemaker, that I have always dreamed of being.

 

Some grow up wanting to be doctors or lawyers, to have a successful career and a life in the city with hustle and bustle.  I have always wanted just the opposite, to be home, to have a family, to be a mom and a wife and a homemaker.  Maybe that's why I feel such a disconnect to modern times, and immediately pulled by old days and quieter simpler life.

 

Now simpler doesn't mean easier, because if you we take a good look at life now and then, we are blessed to have so many things at our fingertips, that make living in general easier to deal with.  Oh but you just said the opposite.....well yes and no.  Life was quieter, simple, not so filled with so many distractions, but daily tasks in and of themselves were harder.

Whether working the land, or taking care of the home, the simplest of tasks took a lot of time.  We don't even have to look further than doing laundry.  Hours and hours were spent over washboards and clotheslines, while now we shove the clothes in a washer, walk away and come back an hour later to move them to another machine that dries them.  

I'm not opposed to these modern marvels, but I feel that what we gain in that area, we lose in others, mainly the connection between families and people.

 

So along with my slow living, I am incorporating soft living as well.  They are very similar in their overall concepts, it is all about slowing down, making things around you softer and not so harsh.  Music, wholesome shows on TV, good books with sweet stories, homemade simple meals that fill the tummies and bring people together around the table.

Gardening, spending time outdoors with your chickens, your pets, your plants and trees.  

Taking care of your home, not just in the chores you do daily, but in the little things that often get overlooked.   Like, updating your recipe binder, as I am doing currently with more healthy and Mediterranean food recipes.

I spent about an hour printing recipes, putting them in protective document sheets and filing them in my binder.  It's something I hadn't done in a while but it was needing an overhaul, and a bit of a clean up.  Just the time I sat doing that at my desk, with a cup of tea, brought so much peace to my heart.

In the background, Kaia and Elliott napped on the bed, softly nestled in their blankets, and a sweet relaxation video played on the TV.  Beautiful scenery with a soft piano soundtrack. 

 

We don't always have to be connected to the world we live in.  We are in this world but not of this world!

 

This quote often plays through my mind when I start feeling overwhelmed.  This busy, chaotic, at times violent world we find ourselves in, is not what I want or appreciate, and I may not be able to change what is around me, but I can certainly not engage in it.  I can choose to pull away and to focus on me, my home and my family.

 

Disconnecting from the modern world and social media, there's a big one.  I do love sharing my day on Instagram stories, but I do so to hopefully inspire others with a slower, kinder, more loving and home focused living.  

 

Spending time with the Lord, working on a favorite project, filling your soul with good things and your body with healthy fuel.  That is what I've been doing and I haven't felt this peaceful, calm and content in many years.

How do you choose to live your life?  Do you like the busy non stop way of living, or like me, do you feel more connected with a simpler more fulfilling lifestyle?

I would love to hear in the comments.  I do feel that a lot more people are drifting away from the hustle and choosing intentional, family time.  What a joy that makes me feel!

If we project more love and more peace into the world, I truly believe we would all be in a better place.  The sin that is rampant around us is a symptom of a broken society, a hardened heart that has been allowed to be influenced by the evil that is so prominent in our current days.

You don't have to live it, pull back, take charge of your life.  Grab that book you've been wanting to read for so long, sit on a comfy chair or couch and enjoy it.  I promise just that simple little act of defiance against the stress of outside influences, will do you a world of good.