Joy in March

Posted on by Astrid

Hi all. It’s time to reflect on my one word for this year again. I am joining the Word of the Year linky, as well as Lisa’s One Word linky. As those who’ve visited me in January or February will know, my word for this year is JOY.

I had quite a few moments of pure joy this past month. Being able to go outside without a jacket for the first time this year, for example. I loved the beautiful weather! I also loved being able to take beautiful flower photos, especially when I could snap them myself.

In the creative area, I’ve struggled to find pure joy. I mean, I’ve been frustrated by a need to be productive rather than merely enjoy my creative process. As such, I’ve often been tempted to get discouraged and, as a result, give up too quickly. This is the case with my macrame, of course, but also with my polymer clay. When I felt I couldn’t take my work to the next level, I would rather easily let it go completely instead of enjoying the craft.

An area in which I’ve done really well with respect to finding joy, is food. Two weeks ago, the dietitian had me and my staff do a mindful eating exercise. We were given a slice of a tangerine in a bowl and first had to merely look at it while pretending we were astronauts stranded on a faraway planet. Then, we could touch it, smell it, lay it on our lips and finally take a tiny bite. All the while, we had to rate how edible we considered this food, given that this was alien food so we had no idea what it was. Once we had taken the tiny bite, we were supposed to wait for how long it’d take for the taste to completely leave our mouths.

The point of the exercise is, of course, that, as a recovering bulimic, I am still tempted to eat, say, a bag of candies all one after the other without even tasting them. The idea of this exercise is to counter this by actually being aware of every little bite or piece of candy and its feel, taste, etc. I have since been quite able to implement this when having treats.

I also have been able to enjoy my marriage more. I am less plagued by thoughts that my husband will leave me than I was some months and certainly years ago. I try to truly, fully focus on my husband when we talk on the phone in the evening. It’s still hard, because I either am losing my hearing or my headphones are failing. Thankfully, I’m going to Lobith again tomorrow, so will be visiting my husband in real life again. It’s been a while!

How have you been doing with your word for 2022?

30 thoughts on “Joy in March”

  1. OH yes, I felt such joy too the first day we were able to shed coats and go without them (not that we didn’t have to put them right back on the next day but we’re well used to that). I love that mindful eating exercise. I hope you have a wonderful time with your husband.

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    1. What do you mean? As in, what equipment I use or how I, as a blind person, snap pictures? Re the latter, my staff usually direct me on how to hold my camera. I do still have some light perception, so I do know when it’s too sunny, in which case either I or my staff try to make shade with our bodies. I am in the process of learning about what distance to hold my phone from an object to snap clear pictures. When I used to take pictures completely independently (when I was already totally blind but was also clueless about photography), I’d hold my phone way too close to objects I was photographing. I can do the zooming in and out on the phone myself, but staff do need to tell me when I need to do it.

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        1. Thanks so much for complimenting me! I am really trying to learn to take photos more and more independently. Until quite recently, I’d usually just hand my phone to my staff and ask them to snap the pictures, but then it didn’t feel as though I’d had any part in the process. Now, though I still do get significant help, it does feel as though I’m taking photos somewhat myself.

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  4. Hi, Astrid – Thank you for joining us at our monthly Word of the Year Link Up. I am delighted to hear that you have experienced much Joy this past month. Yes, to shedding our coats…shedding our masks….and shedding being socially distant from family and friends!

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    1. So true! All mandatory COVID restrictions and requirements were lifted here last Wednesday and I’m so glad, but I haven’t really been able to fully enjoy it yet. Fear still holds me back. Thanks for sharing your perspective though.

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  7. It’s hard for me, too, to let go of my need to be productive and just create or play for the pure joy of it. But it’s worth still trying. I love how you’re finding joy with food by being more mindful of it. I need to do that more too! Your updates bring me joy. 🙂

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    1. So true indeed! I originally, when I wrote about my word for 2022 (I hadn’t found the WOTY linky back then), intended on looking for joy in the ordinary. I am so happy that’s going quite well.

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  9. Your word of the year Joy is a wonderful one and your monthly update is lovely and joyful. We will be going into coats soon as autumn sets in. Thanks so much for joining us with your monthly update.

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    1. Thanks so much for stopping by. I hope I sent some spring cheer your way (if you’re not a fan of fall) and that you’re able to find some joy this coming season regardless.

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        1. Oh yes, fall colors are great, as are the fall-inspired scents I can put in my aroma diffuser (of course, I can do that all year!). Other than that, I’m not a fan of fall. I am glad you love it though.

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  10. My CALM project hasn’t been great during March, because of being too busy, but at least it’s the last time I do all these projects at the same time so it will be better next spring. But my word of the year progress in March has been a lot about thinking and reflecting, and learning, of which I’m grateful.
    Your eating experiment sounds so interesting and useful. Many times I tend to not eat mindfully, but I should! I’m a whiskey enthusiast and when I drink whiskey, especially a new whiskey, I analyse texture, aromas and flavours quite in-depth and write reviews about it, and your post today reminded me that I should do the same with food!

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    1. Thank you for sharing your experience about whiskey. I cannot really analyze tastes that well, but even on a superficial level, being fully aware of the taste and feel of the food in my mouth adds to the enjoyment of it.

      I completely get it that you’ve been too busy to focus on CALM. Having too many projects to focus on at once, tends to lead to at least some of them suffering.

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  11. I love the mindful eating exercise, Astrid. I’m going to try that. I too easily slide into rushing through a meal without really savoring the joy of eating. I also love the spring weather and the opportunity to get outside without having to bundle up. I wish you and your husband much joy in your upcoming visit.

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    1. Yes, I see the value too. The dietitian used to work in an eating disorders treatment center and did this exercise there with her patients, but really, it can be of use to people who struggle with food regardless of the severity or nature of their struggles.

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