Life's Too Short To Eat The Gherkin
This week’s post is about realising we have a choice… a choice to live life to the fullest…
“The Purpose Of Our Lives Is To Be Happy.”
Dalai Lama
Now, I love gherkins!
So much so that a friend and I have big dreams of attending ‘Picklesburgh’ one day – an annual pickle-themed festival in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania!! OH YEAH!
I have gherkins in sandwiches, and salads, and they are an absolute must on burgers!
But last week I tried them on pizza… big mistake!!
I took one bite and… EURGH! It just did NOT go. I do not recommend it - no matter how much you love your pickles!
So, me being me, I would normally just eat them anyway because I hate waste!
But this newer version of me emerged last Friday night and I thought, “Life’s too short!”
If I’m not enjoying them, then I should just take them off and enjoy the rest of my pizza – pickle-free!
The simple enjoyment of “Friday night pizza” (now a family tradition!) outweighs the waste of three(!) tiny, crinkle-cut slices of pickled cucumber (OK, now I’ve put it that way, no wonder it didn’t go!?).
Life’s too short… full stop!
But shouldn’t this expand beyond the realms of pizza and pickles and into other areas of my life – embracing those small pleasures and making slight adjustments so that our daily lives are filled with more enjoyment and less ‘necessity’?…
Comfort in meditation
I’ve created this subconscious expectation that to meditate effectively, I must sit bolt upright in a quiet room (not easy when you’re living with two boys and a slightly senile cat who can’t hear herself meowing, so continues to try with escalating decibels!)
But I’ve come to realise this is making it less appealing and harder to achieve!
Meditation is not about having ‘perfect’ conditions it’s about creating a ‘healthy’ habit, and if I can do that in a way that is more comfortable and accessible, then I’m more likely to achieve it and reap the benefits!
So… in my pyjamas… amongst the noise and chaos of family life… lying in bed… or sitting at the kitchen table… it’s about just doing it!
Let there be light
Like many of us, I am prone to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a type of depression that transpires over certain months, typically winter.
But as I’ve become more aware of it over recent years, and understand it a little better, it’s helped me to prepare and better manage it!
I recently wrote about preparing for the winter months in my post “Welcoming Winter”:
And one thing that I’ve discovered that helps me endure the season, is light!
During winter we are less exposed to sunlight which can affect the hormone levels responsible for mood and energy.
And I have realised that light can make a big difference to my mood!
I love light! It lifts me up… It invigorates me… It comforts me… It re-energises me!
Ideally, I would have lights on here, there and everywhere, but I am conscious of energy use (which was only unfortunately exacerbated by a visitor one day who took it upon themselves to turn my daytime light off, unintentionally reinforcing my worry that I’m wasting energy and so suffering in the dim, dreary light of the bleak months).
But more recently, I’ve re-assessed this, and decided that light is going to support me psychologically!
That having a light on in a room I’m occupying for a long time, whether it be my SAD light, fairy lights, a ceiling light or the comforting glow of an amber desk light, will support my mood and wellbeing, and so the benefits it brings is not a waste.
I will be more energetic, more productive and hopefully a happier and less-grumpy mum…?!?! (Yey! I hear my kids cheer!)
At the end of the day, it’s about weighing up the pain Vs the gain – which will better serve our wellbeing?…
Take care and much love,
Julie x
Worst pizza I ever tried was a “Thai pizza”. Like you with pickles, I love Thai food—but Thai pizza was positively disgusting in my book. Ewww. After reading this hubby and I would toss it rather than muddle through as we did. 😆
You’re so right. Life is too short.