Survival Skills

It’s the little things that count. In the summer of 2019, my partner Steve bought me a beautiful handmade leather journal containing lovely handmade paper.

I was totally intimidated to use it—not wanting to “wreck” its beauty—until this past spring when the pandemic came upon us. I came across an enticing idea of what I could do with my lovely journal. It suggested I use two facing sheets each day. On the left I wrote “I remember . . .” and then all the way down I would put bullet points of whatever came to mind: a smell, an image, a snippet of a lovely remembrance. On the facing page I wrote “Did” on one half and “Saw” on the other and drew a line down the middle of the page. I listed seven things I did that day—no matter how small: “Coffee with Steve while reading Heather’s blog,” “Replenish hummer feeders.” On the right half of the sheet I’d list seven things I “saw”: Verdin at orange slices in front Mesquite” “Bald Eagle chasing Osprey for its fish.” After listing seven of each, I’d draw a horizontal line across the lower half of the page and list at least one thing I “Heard” that day: “Gila Woodpecker,” or “Ospreys calling” or sometimes just “music.” On the right bottom half of the page I would have a “Doodle.” Now this was daunting at first. I started with spirals and then found I could do little faces: sometimes sad, but I’d think of something I was grateful for and draw a happy little face. I found I like their little eyes—so expressive; whatever came to mind to “doodle.”

So why am I sharing this with you? Well, I think it’s helped me get through this sometimes very trying year. It’s helped me keep going—on days when it felt very hard to do so. It has helped me realize the “little” things in my life aren’t as “little” as I’d previously thought. It made me so very grateful for my life.The large important things, yes, but—maybe even more important—the “little” things that I realized aren’t so little after all. It’s a good thing (for me) to stay grateful. It keeps me happy in trying times.