There’s a cluttered cabinet under the sink calling your name. A closet of disorganized chaos that smacks your conscience when you open the door.
And how about all those clothes you know you’ll never actually wear? They need to be gathered up, and washed, and prepared for donations. Even if the bag just sits in your car for now you’re one step closer to getting these things donated.
What projects around the house have been waiting for attention? Now is definitely the time.
There’s nothing like getting dirty and accomplishing tasks for pushing anxiety out the door.
10. Read a book at the same time as a friend. Call to talk about it and share thoughts.
Do you have a friend with similar reading tastes to your own?
Why don’t you each decide to read a practical book at the same time? You can pick a favorite title or try something new. Ideally, keep pace with each other as you read.
Then set up a call to talk about it. Discuss what strikes you. When you call, make a cup of coffee or a pot of tea. Pour some wine. Or whiskey.
Have a drink and a lively discussion across the miles, whether they be three or thirty or three thousand.
11. Get fresh flowers.
Next time you’re out for groceries, grab some flowers from the store’s florist section.
There are usually some ready-made bouquets that are relatively inexpensive. Carnations, for example, are some of the cheapest you’ll find—and those chipper little flowers manage to look good right into the third week! (They even look good when they die. Ask me how I know.)
Flowers bring life, hope, and beauty to the home. It is amazing how much something like this can make a difference in your mood, especially on a wet or cloudy day.
It might sound silly, but try it!
12. Go for a walk outdoors.
If you are able to where you live, go for walks outside. If not daily, at least a few times a week!
Look up at the sky, look around you, breathe deeply, listen to the birds.
Don’t bring headphones and music—save that for inside. I suggest being really present to the world around you. Let the beauty of creation penetrate you.
Studies are proving that walking outdoors works wonders for the mood and the mind.
And if you walk briskly, with good posture, you’re getting the best kind of exercise for your body.
13. Find the stamps. Write a letter.
Now is the time. It doesn’t matter what you think of your handwriting or whether you think you’ll have anything worthwhile to say: write a letter. It can be two paragraphs long. Or five pages. You can write it on that stationary you bought five years ago, or you can tear pages out of a notebook. Talk about the weather, if you like.
I can attest, from personal experience, that there is nothing like getting an unexpected handwritten note in the mail.
Think of it: you go to check the mail, glumly, pulling out the odious ads and the unpleasant bills and then…you see very human writing, perhaps very familiar handwriting…you see your name written with affection, not stamped by a heartless machine…and you realize that there is an honest-to-goodness letter for YOU.
That calls for a pot of fresh coffee, no matter what time of day it is.
We’re so disconnected in this supposedly-connected world that you might not even have your friend’s address.
Well, be mysterious. Send them a text or email asking for their current mailing address. Don’t explain. It’s quite intriguing, actually. Friends won’t even ask why you want their address.
They get a sense of expectation, though, for they know not what; and that’s pleasant in itself.
Bonus Tip
Gratitude is an important practice, and one that is a powerful source of encouragement.
When you feel overwhelmed, take a moment to count up the blessings that you have and are surrounded by.
And for your own sake, limit your news intake! Many people find that listening to news updates in small bits every few days—rather than for hours at a time (or constantly) through the day—is enormous in relieving stress, fear, and pressure.
Hopefully these tips were helpful, if not original.
Keep your chin up—and your eyes on God.
…we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
Romans 5:1-5
.Image courtesy of Unsplash.
This post was originally published on GoodCatholic.com and is reprinted here with permission.
