Dear Reader,
How beautiful is it that my letter has found itself in your inbox on the first day of May!? As Author and Naturalist Edwin Way Teale said,
“All things seem possible in May.”
I am preparing myself for a May full of possibilities, and through this letter, I am hoping the same for you and sprinkling some fairy dust.
I sent the first of these letters out from my Bangalore home, overlooking the railway lines, on a cool September evening. This is my 9th letter, that I am writing you from my Kochi home, on a hot and humid Saturday afternoon. Both these letters were written kilometres apart, at different weathers, at different times of the day, by different people. If there is one thing that has not changed, it is how grateful I am to you for the space in your inbox and for these beautiful five minutes wherein your eyes graze through my words. Thank you, you beautiful human.
I have come to you today with some thought pebbles I collected over the past few months. Some that helped me, some that I am working on and some that make me feel things. I am sharing them with you in the hopes of making your life easier, your body healthier and your mind lighter, this May:
I have been subscribing to James Clear’s Newsletter 3-2-1 in which he shares 3 ideas, 2 Quotes and 1 question every week. If you are into a habit building journey, you should check out his Newsletter. This idea from a couple of weeks ago, stuck with me:
It's hard to build momentum if you're dividing your attention.
My attention gets divided mainly because, I often, subconsciously reach for my phone and social media, and get lost in it amidst work. I am now figuring out ways in which I can use Social media rather than Social media using me. When I crack that code, I will share it with you.
But here is something you can start off with. A few years ago, my sister told me about a deep focus App called Forest. When you decide the time you require for focusing on a task, and start the App, a tree gets planted. If you have decided to work for 25 minutes, the tree would take 25 minutes to grow. If you access any application on your phone during this time, the tree will die. It works as an excellent reminder when you subconsciously reach out for your phone and social media. The App has worked extremely well for me. They have a chrome extension of it as well.
I came across this 15 minutes No-bake Granola recipe by nutrition and fitness coach, Adhya, and tried it out. It was an instant hit at home, and the first jar is almost over. You get all the ingredients in the supermarkets. You can also choose to avoid certain ingredients if you don’t find them. I did not have cinnamon powder and so I didn’t add that. My mother is a diabetes patient who has a hectic work schedule. So this works as a sugar free, quick snacks, and two spoons of it go a long way amidst a busy schedule. You can even have it with milk.
I recently finished Janice Pariat’s book The Nine Chambered heart. I will be reviewing the book on my blog. I have so many markers peeping out from it because I found some beautiful thoughts and metaphors that I marked. I am sharing some here:
“I look to you to feel good, but I realise that if I give someone that power, they can also make me feel like shit about myself.”
I have always, ALWAYS, looked to others for approval. I am unlearning that and so, this sentence hit home. Perhaps, this is what triggered the change. It is a fairly new improvement in me.
Here is another one - “It is impossible for anything tender to survive.”
Perhaps that is why we change. We do difficult things. But as I change, I also want to retain the tender parts of me. That is the challenge. Isn’t it?
In February 2023, I joined for swimming lessons. At the end of April 2023, I can say that I am a fairly good swimmer. While learning how to swim, I learnt about the power of one more. Initially, I used to swim the 25 meter length of the pool in 3 stretches. Gradually I could cover it in 2. Sometimes I would almost reach the end, and give up. When I learnt of power of one more, just when I was about to give up, I would tell myself, ‘one more swim’. When I swam a little more, I would see the pool wall. ‘One more swim’, I would push further and I would reach. The first time I reached, I was an exhilarated Dog! I was whooping, panting and holding on to the edge of the pool with all my might! It was scary, funny and exhilarating! Now, I do 12 laps quite well if I take ample rest between each lap. I have come a long way.
I want to try rock climbing next. (This is my putting it out in the Universe.)
I now leave you with a sunset that I happened to catch today.
As you know, this is a letter to you, which means that you can always reply to it. Let me know if anything in my letter resonated with you. Tell me where you find your peace, strength or calm in your life. You can tell me if you want me to include anything else in these letters.
If you enjoy my letters, can you ask just one of your friends to subscribe to my letter? I wouldn’t want anything more than people who read me and relate to my words :)
Until your response or until my next letter,
wishing you a gay May,
A Mayflower