Since this isn't a cooking blog, the title may leave some wondering what new yarn craze now includes spices. While I'm not aware of any spice sprinkling techniques with yarn, I am using the word from a well-known and often used saying:
Variety is the SPICE of life!
In a couple earlier blog posts, I wrote about the importance of self-care, and how to incorporate our yarn habits into these routines. This is a continuation of that theme. In the Northeast/North Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, November is that month where we put away our Summer duds and pull out warmer blankets for sleeping, sweaters and more sensible shoes for trudging through wet leaves and eventually, snow. It's also the time of year that we "fall back" with our clocks, which means that instead of getting dark each evening sometime between 7pm and 8pm, it grows dark earlier and earlier as we approach the Winter Solstice (December 21) where it will be dark by 5pm. I don't know about you, but cold and dark outside is a recipe for me wanting to remain at home in my comfy clothes, with some yarn close by. And this is a perfectly acceptable choice to make on a chilly, November day! The only caution I raise is that it can become a little too easy to make this our default response to any offers that invite us to venture outside of the house. Here's where a little SPICE becomes an important ingredient in our yarn journeys. Whenever I talk about this topic (spice), I remember a time when my mom left me in charge of finishing the chili she had planned for dinner that evening. I was to take the ground beef and onions that she had prepared, and add cans of beans and tomatoes, a number of spices and heat it through to serve to my dad, sister and I (she was going to be at a meeting). I was distracted, probably on the phone with my friends and maybe even watching that new TV channel, MTV. I ended up basically warming up ground beef and adding some tomatoes, beans and only a few of the spices. The FUNNIEST part is that my dad ate his bowl of chili and asked for more, When my mom got home later that evening, she wasn't amused, and I was in the dog house for a few days. At the time I couldn't figure out what the big deal was, but I know now that the BEST chili recipes have a special blend of spices that make them unique and tasty. Our lives are no different than that batch of chili. They can be acceptable, or we can work to add a unique blend of spices to it which will make it more memorable and interesting, and here's where the "hard work" comes in, especially in the Winter months. In the same way that we balked at swallowing the awful tasting medicine the doctor prescribed us as kids, we need to do things that seem - at least in the moment - to be as distasteful as that medicine from years ago. We need to get up off the couch, put on some grown-up clothes, clean up and go out where we can be with others in company and conversation. Like that awful-tasting medicine, it turns out that it's good for us. Self-care with yarn is INFINITELY more effective and impactful if we are able to "spice it up" by getting out and about. There are so many options for us, regardless of where we live or what our ability to get up and go might be. Our job is to take that first step, and do something that gets us out and about, and that is something we have not done before, or at least in a long time. Sometimes this requires us to look for opportunities, but other times it simply requires that we say YES. How often do we see an opportunity to participate in something and think "I'd rather stay home and knit/crochet"? How often is it easier to say NO than to have to plan what to wear, how to get there, and then think about making small talk (Yikes!). If we think about it, in the past when we've drug ourselves up off the couch and out the door, we end up enjoying ourselves and are glad we made the effort. In other words, we FEEL BETTER after making the choice to do something different; to add some SPICE to our life. If you're feeling a little to hermit-like, I encourage you to start small. Say YES to something that is outside your usual activity pattern. Agree to help in an event, participate in a group project, attend a celebration: say YES to something new (for you). Tonight, I'll be trading my sweats and slippers for more business-appropriate attire and attending the kick-off debut (Artist toast!) of the Pittsburgh Satellite Reef Project, held at the Carnegie Museum of Art. I contributed 2 pieces of crocheted coral to this project and am listed, along with hundreds of other yarnies, as a contributing artist! (I'm so excited I can't stand it!) This opportunity came across my radar earlier this year. I looked into it and decided it was one of those rare opportunities to be a part of something bigger than me. I'm SO glad I followed through and am looking forward to this evening's activities, AND to seeing the Satellite Reef!!! (hopefully, I'll have some photos to share in a future blog post). Taking care of ourselves doesn't have to be a major overhaul project. It can be as simple as saying YES to something new that comes along.
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