I’m not sure why we treat January 1st—the dead of winter—as a great time to start striving. I could think of nothing I’d rather do less when I’m in survival mode, and to be clear: winter’s short, dark days and freezing temperatures most certainly put me in that mindset. By a few months in, however, I think we have our legs under us a bit more. The routines are back, calendars are busy, and there’s more to look forward to.
Enter: glorious Spring. Blooming plants! Daylight Savings! New life! Promises kept! And God, the serotonin boost I feel when the sky is still light out after I return from work and the gym… It’s like I have my life back. What a miracle. Spring offers a new world, and a new lease on life, if you let it. What will we do with that precious energy? In the spirit of a reset and renewal, I offer you my 5 little intentions for the spring season:
Grow something. I’m starting with planting a vegetable garden. I have a nice backyard and plenty of sunshine, and though I’ve never been much of a green thumb, I figure starting with a nice raised bed and some light research can do wonders for a little cultivation.
An old magazine scan from Mark D. Sikes’ Instagram Create more. In a non-work-related capacity, that is. To an extent, working on my house qualifies, but since I’ve maxed out the budget on big changes for now, I’d like to turn back to older pastimes like painting and drawing. when you are “creative” for a living, hobbies like this feel daunting or even sometimes exhausting to consider, but the loss of doing things with my hands is a real one. I miss the way it forces my brain to relax and approach problems in a different way. Time to try again.
Keep going. I’ve been strength training for 45 minutes, 3 times a week every week for almost 2 years now (with exceptions for travel and illness, of course.) I also have a Peloton bike at home for days when I’m not in the gym with my trainer. The results have been, well, very slow coming but remarkable nonetheless. I’m learning that like muscle, discipline builds on itself in action. I’ve never really been good at discipline, so the mission here is simply to keep practicing it.
David Hockney painting the pool at the Hollywood Roosevelt (1988) Read more books. So far this year, I read all six Game Changers books (zero regrets), and I’ve since enjoyed The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich, The Correspondent by Virginia Evans, Horse by Geraldine Brooks, and a couple others that were less memorable. Next on the list are Buckeye by Patrick Ryan, and Strangers by Belle Burden. That’s an admirable start for me, a person who can go many months without turning a page. And you know what? I am better for it. How obnoxious.
Photo for the cover of Life magazine by Greg Miller (June 24, 2005) Be less online. I keep draining my phone battery down before it’s even 5pm, and to me that says enough. The mission is: Stop the scroll. Look out the window. Put my fingers in the dirt. Go for a walk without headphones or a camera... etc.. Should we call this peacemaxxing? I’ll see myself out…
Happy Easter, should you celebrate. But more importantly: happy spring!
Thank you for being here,
Such a great list! And I’m with you. It’s hard to start new things when it’s cold and dark especially up north where I am. But a very simple yet inspiring list.