A couple times a month, I would fancy up my menu or suddenly became convinced that we needed different throw pillows.
I loved thumbing through the pages with friends and pointing out our favorite parts of each image, so I kept a few copies stacked cleverly on my coffee table. It was a welcomed little peek into a delightful dream world of decor and design, and it rested gently on our garage sale furniture surrounded by brown shag carpet in our vintage parsonage.
A few years into our marriage, Philip ordered DirectTV. I wasn't a fan of TV in general, but when they stuck an HG in front of it, I was hooked. All week long, there were shows filled with helpful hints and creative ideas for maintenance, decoration, and hospitality.
Every week, I would reconsider an organizing strategy, or tackle a new project, or suddenly become convinced that we needed more throw pillows.
I remember laughing at myself in pity, thinking, "Before seeing this, I just figured my pillows were ok. But now I am distracted by the idea that they are probably not ok."
All these years later, is this what is happening today with [social] media?
All day every day ...
seeds of discontent are
planted in beds of comparison
and fertilized with filtered fake and
they are sprouting up
insecurity and despair
into all the facets of life -
not just pillows and puff pastries
but vacations, relationships, wellness, and every part of parenting.
The inspiring information no longer arrives in a concise format once per month. The motivational campaign for more and more improvement isn't contained to the living room television. The onslaught of sirens - unsolicited excessivity and unrealistic expectations is everywhere every minute. Unless you tell it not to be. Dam it.
Make it stop. At least some of the time. We can be intentional about our rhythms and defaults. Construct a barrier that holds it all at bay. Design a system where you can access appropriate amounts of external stimulus that fuel your creativity and joy. Unless we govern our intake, the sheer volume will take us out. Dam it for good.
I struggle with this on the regular, so if you need a buddy, holler. But since we're here, I want you to hear me say this: you are great, I mean it.
Of course you're not perfect, but I sincerely believe you are an incredible work in progress. I bet there are a couple areas in life where you are absolutely thriving. Remind yourself and high five!
And it's also wise to identify something to work on, so that you can take a tiny step toward more freedom and joy today. You can do it, I know you can!
Also, no matter what you suddenly notice, your throw pillows are terrific. I promise.
