Tuesday, Tuesday

Project 365, Day 12

Good morning my friends. You’ll be reading this Tuesday morning, but for me, it’s Monday morning and I’m finding it difficult to focus on storytelling or writing. Too many headlines from today and the weekend swirling around in my head to focus in on something pleasant to share with you. For those of you stateside, how are you all feeling? (Not to say I don’t care about how anyone abroad is feeling, I am!). I’m a bit muddy in the brain, heavy-hearted.

That’s a pretty crappy way to start a workweek, so before I shift over mentally and physically to my day-job side of the table, I just want to lay out a few things I’m grateful for. I’m an adamant believer in the kill-them-with-kindness philosophy, so if it works with people, perhaps it’ll work with my brain and soul today. Just going to go off the cuff, the first things that come to mind:

Today, January 11 (12, for you), I’m grateful for…

Charles. He’s always the first thing that comes to mind with gratitude. I’m grateful for a partner who is my equal, who I can share my vulnerabilities with, who I can laugh with. He’s my biggest cheerleader with Project 365. “Did you write your post yet?” If…WHEN, I make it to the finish line, I promise you right now, he will have been a big part of why.

My body. It’s far from perfect right now, still working on healing, but I feel the slightest bit of progress and for that, I am grateful. To be honest, I told my darling friend Jess this, but there is a part of me that decided to do my writing project because it was something I could control. Something that was predictable. I’ve never had the need to “control” something in my life really until now. I’m sure it’s a combination of the pandemic, the state of the country, and the state of my body that needs some normalcy and routine. Everything changes so quickly, at least my daily writings can be consistent.

My new mugs. This is a silly one, but I ordered a new set of mugs over Black Friday (now sold out but man do I love these!) that finally made it to me and they bring me a bit of joy every morning. The slightest tweak to your everyday can make such a difference in things not feeling stale. I find that it’s either comforting to have your trusty standbys, or it’s uplifting to have something new. I fall into both arenas, but this time, the newness of my mugs that I start my mornings with still excites me!

My job. While there are surely days that I dream of just being a writer, tucked away in a lakeside cottage pecking away at a keyboard writing a novel or something…far away from Slack messages and Zoom check-ins, there are others where I’m grateful for the stability of my day job. Marketing during days like these can be tough, honestly. Putting on my thinking hat, how do I make people want to buy furniture, when it feels like the world is on fire (literally) can be both a bit soulless but also a great distraction.

A bathtub. Never have I been much of a bath person. The time it takes to fill up the tub, how quickly the hot water runs out during the process, how I feel like I need to take a shower after the bath to actually wash up…eh. But the last few months, what was a necessity for me (good for the muscles and back!) has turned into a multiple-times-a-week indulgence. I’m really getting into it now, with bath bombs, epsom salts, spa music. I haven’t always lived in a place with a tub, so I’m grateful I have the option, and also grateful I discovered my latent love of the soak.

And there it is. Five small and big things on my gratitude list today. I’m already feeling better!

See you tomorrow, friends!