Feest Isolation Days – 17 August
Days have been wet. And grey and even greyer. Instead of going out for a long walk we decided to do Pilates together for an hour and see how that goes. We do a one on one class each week, well Terry does it for some reason every other week…but I do it weekly. Doing this together makes a little change and a nice break from whatever normal now is.
We have to carry our sunshine with us on days like this. It’s promising to be a full week ahead of grey damp weather. In preparation for the winter, there are a few tricks up our sleeve yet! Projects are the answer. For me, I have a book project to work on. Not that that will be all sunshine and rainbows either, but at least it keeps me occupied and in flow.
Apparently, to be mentally healthy, what we need to do is find something that keeps us in flow. That can be anything from baking a cake or knitting or gardening and playing an instrument. I think flow used to be called concentration. Something that takes our mind off the grey and the virus and the American shenanigans and keeps us at whatever it is.
One of the things I miss about swimming is it gave me exactly the opposite of flow. I don’t have to concentrate on swimming. I’ve been a swimmer since I was tiny and it comes naturally to me so I don’t have to think about it. It’s the time when I can let my brain think through whatever it wants while crawling from one side of a pool to the other. No I don’t count laps. I time swim. And my brain gets to have freedom to let go. The bike doesn’t offer that. You have to be alert and aware the entire time on the bike. The freedom of release isn’t possible. I do miss my swimming! Maybe I can find something else that does that. Or a pool that is properly adhering to the measures required in these Covid times.
What do you get up to that keeps you in the flow or lets you just drift? I could do with some other ideas!
I asked Mr. Google about these sorts of things and found a wonderful statement about the meaning of life itself. I think I’ve found the answer! According to Tim Bale, a professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London the answer is easy. “The meaning of life is not being dead.”
Because we live, life matters. I thought that was a hoot! When you start thinking about these big heavy topics in these big heavy times, there has to be a little light relief. That did it for me!
Keep on living, whatever else you do…it’s the only thing that really matters. Enjoy!
With love
Kathy x