Mentally
It has been a busy summer but this week I tackled my goal of being happier by challenging myself mentally. Every day I took at least 20 minutes to myself for this goal, which was no easy task. I only missed one day of practicing the piano and it was so enjoyable to have that much time to just play. While I practiced all types of music, I decided to especially focus on re-learning Rachmaninoff's fifth piano concerto. It was my senior recital piece and I'll admit I barely made it through the song back then. I love it though and can mostly play it so I'm hoping that in a few weeks of concentrated effort that I'll be able to sit down and play it all the way through again.
I also spent time reading a fiction book about WWII that took place in Hungary. I know very little about Hungary so while it was kind of depressing, it was informative and an interesting read. I also broke out my Norton Anthology from when I went on study abroad to London and read through some John Milton poems. It was challenging and took focus and I enjoyed reading my notes that I had made in the margin some 16 years ago and thinking again about what he was trying to communicate and how it made me feel, then and now.
So, did this make me happier? It definitely did. I felt better about myself and appreciated recapturing some of what I used to be able to do. It is kind of frustrating to think that I used to rock calculus and now I look at my old notebooks and can't make any sense of it. Of course I am doing a lot now that I couldn't at 17 but I'd like to hold on to as many previously learned skills as possible and this week helped me feel good about working on that goal. As a mom who stays home it can be easy to be intellectually lazy and this just rekindled my love of continuing education and focused my attention on the importance of expanding my world outside of my home, children, church and small community.
One day while practicing the piano I had to keep relocating my 18-month-old who was trying desperately to climb up on the piano bench with me and as he stood next to me screaming, I did have to ask myself if this goal was really making me happier. I decided in the end that having 20 minutes to do something that will make me feel better and be better was a sacrifice that he was just going to have to make. The road to happiness is not an easy one but a worthwhile one. Next up, emotionally!
I also spent time reading a fiction book about WWII that took place in Hungary. I know very little about Hungary so while it was kind of depressing, it was informative and an interesting read. I also broke out my Norton Anthology from when I went on study abroad to London and read through some John Milton poems. It was challenging and took focus and I enjoyed reading my notes that I had made in the margin some 16 years ago and thinking again about what he was trying to communicate and how it made me feel, then and now.
So, did this make me happier? It definitely did. I felt better about myself and appreciated recapturing some of what I used to be able to do. It is kind of frustrating to think that I used to rock calculus and now I look at my old notebooks and can't make any sense of it. Of course I am doing a lot now that I couldn't at 17 but I'd like to hold on to as many previously learned skills as possible and this week helped me feel good about working on that goal. As a mom who stays home it can be easy to be intellectually lazy and this just rekindled my love of continuing education and focused my attention on the importance of expanding my world outside of my home, children, church and small community.
One day while practicing the piano I had to keep relocating my 18-month-old who was trying desperately to climb up on the piano bench with me and as he stood next to me screaming, I did have to ask myself if this goal was really making me happier. I decided in the end that having 20 minutes to do something that will make me feel better and be better was a sacrifice that he was just going to have to make. The road to happiness is not an easy one but a worthwhile one. Next up, emotionally!
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