spring
Dear Ciara,
Spring is here. I can feel it in the air. As I’ve told you before, we don’t really experience the seasons in Tropical Queensland the way you do down south, but I can certainly feel a change. The humidity is beginning to rise, sweat dribbling down my spine. The wet season approaches. Before I know it, there will again be periods of endless rain. Sometimes the rains last for days on end. It is good then that I have spent these last few weeks building some creative habits so that I am entertained during those times when I am stuck indoors.
I have significantly minimised my phone use, removing all social media from my phone other than Facebook Messenger (which I use to connect with my friends and family back home) and Fable (which I literally only use to track what I am reading). I’ve even completely removed YouTube from my phone, which has proven to be an incredible decision. I wasn’t really aware of how much time I wasted watching videos until I deleted it. The irony is that most of the videos I was consuming were about being creative… I was watching these instead of actually being creative and making something! I still watch the occasional video on my TV but gone is that the endless scroll of recommended videos that consume hours of my day.
Instead, I’ve been setting up some better habits. I’ve begun a commonplace book where I write all my ideas and experiment with them, free-write, and also take notes from non-fiction books that I’m reading. I’m currently reading an engaging text about how Christianity became the dominant religion in the West. I’ve also set up a “scrapbook” of sorts where I rewrite some of these notes from my commonplace in a more artistic way, make collages out of old magazine articles, write poetry, etc. Neither of these books have all that much structure, but I am finding myself eager to add to them each day.
My garden has subsequently taken a bit of a backbench in my list of priorities, but I plan to get stuck into it this weekend and complete some overdue jobs. The back garden bed is overgrown with weeds and I need to thin them out. I know I’ll never get rid of them, but it feels good to reduce their population.
Overall, I’m feeling a lot more energised and positive today. My weekend was rejuvenating as I attended a workshop that reminded me of what I love about my career and reignited my passion for my work. I am entering the week with fresh and eager eyes.
The song for today is:
All For Myself — Sufjan Stevens
More Sufjan Stevens. I’m sorry. He’s currently in control of my ears and won’t let me listen to anybody else. I feel as though I am 15 again and “fangirling” over an artist on Tumblr. Those were the days. This particular song stirs my stomach like nothing else. The lyrics are marvellous.
Love,
The Gardener