It’s been a challenging six weeks. With the passing of our beloved family pet and the overwhelming cycle of national and world news, I’ve needed to grieve and just be. Turning the page on January, it’s time to start fresh, begin anew. While a month late in choosing my new year’s focus, I’m ready now.
But being one who likes closure, I first wanted to share my December self-care experience that I didn’t get a chance to tell you about earlier. Each evening that month, I opened my poetry notebook and penned a haiku about an event that happened that day. A few were humorous like the one I called “Drill” about going to the dentist, others were about sightings in nature that I noticed on my daily walks. All written in the 5-7-5 syllable format, each captured one moment in time.
From my journal: December 14, 2025, Newbury Park, California
“…writing a haiku is a fun way to sum up a day…today I made note of the holiday…
Hanukkah
Nine candles standing
The sacred candelabra
Light the shamash first.
I thoroughly enjoyed this self-care activity! I really liked slowing down as I reviewed my day. It gave me the chance to revisit how I felt and to think about one image, item, or experience at a time. Combining my love of art and writing, I’ve decided to ink a few of my haikus onto the finger painted sheets that I created and wrote about in my blog Adult’s Child Play posted on November 3, 2025 .This has given me a way to extend this self-care pastime even further…yay!
Now onto this year’s focus. If you’ve read my blog for some time, you may recall two years ago I was on a monthly Quest for Calm, and last year, I engaged in Self-Care Activities. Feeling the need to be more centered, this year I’ve chosen to direct my attention to the here and now. So, I’ll be focused on Mindfulness. In considering what this entails, I’ll select ventures that I hope will encourage, perhaps even push me to pay attention to what is happening as it is happening. That means sometimes I’ll step out of my comfort zone and will try new things. Other times, I’ll approach a familiar activity in a new way.
While I’ve always thought of mindfulness as simply meditation, there’s more to it. Mindfulness is the practice of acknowledging your thoughts, feelings, and sensations, without judgment as they occur. And sure, mediation is one way to be mindful, but just about any daily endeavor can be done and approached with this kind of openness and awareness. I’m interested in this because I want to be less reactive to situations and people. I want to be more relaxed and at peace with myself. And I want to manage my stress better.
Now, my first Mindfulness pick is an item that’s been on my Think Big List, aka Bucket List for quite a while. It’s something I’ve wanted to try but have been hesitant because like many of us, I let my head get in the way. It’s interesting how our inner critics pop up in times like these. Mine has said, “You’re too old,” and “You have no experience,” and “You will embarrass yourself in front of everyone.” Yikes! Luckily, I have Robert, husband extraordinaire, who always nudges me along.
So, just a few weeks ago on my birthday, he presented me with a shoe box. When I read Capezio on the cover, I thought “dance”. And lo and behold inside I found my very first pair of black leather lace up…tap dance shoes!
I am now enrolled in a Beginner’s Tap class starting this week! As I’ve done in the past, I will record my discoveries and will share them with you. I know that learning anything new may be frustrating, awkward, and perhaps intimidating, but this class will give me the chance to practice directing my full attention to the present moment. It will allow me to be aware of myself, physically, mentally, and emotionally. All steps forward, in my desire to be more mindful and to be fully present in the here and now.
A Journal Journey 