FINDING JOY IN LITTLE THINGS

Shockingly for me, who usually feels bad about something every day, I have not grumbled even a tiny bit about being stuck at home during the pandemic. I’m grateful that it hasn’t negatively affected my daily life, (except for bringing my looks down a bit, which you can see for yourself here in my latest YouTube video, telling a funnily painful story from my life, which I hope will give you all a tiny bit of joy: www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRorvsWZn6Y&feature=youtu.be.)

And I’m more than happy to do my part to stop the spread of the virus. (I wish that everyone would, instead of acting like things are normal again, which they definitely are not!)

But being the Empath that I’m always told I am, I can’t help but be depressed for the rest of the world during these incredibly trying times. The totally unnecessary loss of so many lives has gotten to me the most, of course, but I’m also concerned about the loss of jobs, kids having this very weird upbringing, elderly people not being able to see their loved ones, and just daily life being turned upside down for so many.

For some reason, the onset of Fall is when it finally hit me a little for myself, and made me a tad more depressed about it all. That was because, on the shallowest of personal notes, I got just a little blue over not getting to wear all my fabulous Fall outfits this year! Yes, I know that I could have worn them, but it doesn’t count if no one would see them! I’ve always dressed to entertain the public; never for myself, nor even Mr. X, (except for that one secret neon green dress, but that’s a story that will remain private!)

What has upset me the most for the past several months is seeing people acting like it’s all clear now. I don’t understand how anyone can be dancing on TV, dining out, having get-togethers, etc., like there’s not a care in the world.

Even worse is when they make believe they’re wearing masks and socially-distancing! I recently received an invitation for a cocktail party in the tiniest eatery in New York. It’s bad enough they were having it then to begin with, but the invite said, “Masks must be worn upon entry; Social Distancing practices apply.” Notice the “upon entry” part—it means you can take it off for the duration of the party since everyone will be eating and drinking. And in this self-described “cozy” fifteen-seat space, no more than a handful of people can be 6’ apart, which is how “social distancing” is basically defined at the moment. (The experts say it really should be much more than that.) Even though I love the food there, you couldn’t pay me to attend!

So, to keep sane in the middle of my now-over-nine months of isolation*, I made a conscious decision to find joy in the little things, and concentrate on those. Here are some of mine; I’m hoping they will encourage you all to do the same:

~ That my solitaire cards turned adorably Christmas-themed a few weeks ago.

~ Needing breakfast dishes in the morning, seeing that the cupboard is bare, and then remembering that I did a dishwasher load in the middle of the night, so clean dishes are all ready for me!

~ That Mr. X and I have discovered that I’m a great cook! Who knew???

~ Watching a couple of old movies in a row, and not feeling guilty about it, like I have to get up and do anything else right then.

~ Happening upon a never-before-opened make-up item, such as mascara or lipstick, (although I have no idea when I’m ever going to get to wear the latter ever again! But at least I’ll be all ready when I do.)

~ Discovering all kinds of really old TV shows, which are incredibly calming right now. (If you missed my lauding of Perry Mason, you can read it here: itsnotaboutme.tv/news/television-my-summer-of-perry-mason.)

~ Wearing the new slipper-socks that someone sent me recently—they are the coziest footwear ever, and I get a bit of joy every time I put them on!

~ Finding unremembered pictures of long ago happy times.

~ Donning last year’s red holiday pajamas set, and still having this year’s new blue one to look forward to, (which is good because I’m in PJs at least three-quarters of the time now, anyway! Isn’t everyone?)

~ Opening a hidden-away box and seeing my set of beloved mint green plates which I was just wondering what happened to!

I even found joy in searching for the images to use in this article!

So, to get you started on a bit for yourself, here’s that link again to my latest YouTube video, which I sincerely hope will spark some joy in all of you: www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRorvsWZn6Y&feature=youtu.be.

What are your little joys? Please share them in the Comments section below, so that we can all inspire each other.

*[Note: “Isolation” is not really the right word because I’m not isolated—I’m with Mr. X. Isolated means to be alone, solitary, separated from other persons or things. But “quarantine,” “lockdown,” and “sequestered” are not exactly correct, either. (Dictionaries exist for a reason, people.) The appropriate word is more like “semi-mandated-and-the-only-smart-move-of-staying-at-home-until-the-pandemic-is-all-over.” But since that’s crazy long, (not to mention not a real word,) just please know what I mean when I say “isolation” from here on out.]