Lately, my life has been moving very fast. All sorts of different possibilities for my future have been popping up left and right. Things I have dreamed about and been asking for, my whole life.
The possibility to participate in my first art show.
The chance to create and sell my very own artwork at a couple local galleries.
The opportunity to teach art at a local school.
The possibility to go back to school to study something (very different from art) that I am deeply interested in.
The chance to work on a large scale rebrand with my dream clients, who truly value strong graphic design skills, branding and marketing knowledge.
When I really sit down to think about it I am blown away. And very very grateful.
But with so much going on, I find myself getting lost in the hustle and bustle, and rarely do I take the time to stop and breath and truly, consciously appreciate all that I have in my life, and all that I am so so fortunate has come my way.
So this week I have chosen to stop living in the hustle and bustle and be present and grateful.
To do this, I have been reminding myself, during moments when my mind gets wondering off in all my to-do’s, Emily, what is important right now? What are you grateful for in this moment?
This often happens while I am driving. So for a moment, I take a look around and I say thank you trees, for your beauty, for cleaning the air, for helping bring rain. Thank you crops, for feeding our world. Thank you farmers for working so hard to provide for us as well.
I also think of all the special moments that have happened, that day or that week, that brought me joy, that I am so grateful for.
This is usually, cuddles with my puppy and my partner. Tea in the morning sunshine on the weekends. A long walk we had the night before. Watching the sunset in the evening. People in my life who I love and who love me.
As a dreamer, it is my natural state to be thinking about the future and living in my head. it is important I keep myself grounded. And using practices like asking what is important in the moment — what I am grateful for in that moment — is a really awesome exercise to bring me back down to Earth, to the present.
A few weekends ago I had the pleasure of working on a task that required manual labour, and hands on work. (Something that I rarely have the opportunity to do, since most of my day is spent on the computer.)
I recently moved into a yard with a lot of apple trees. A lot is an understatement. There are probably close to ten apple trees!!! And this year, they produced soooo many apples.
So I asked my grandma if I could have her hand preparing the apples into apple sauce and juice.
I spent nearly an entire weekend cooking, juicing and squishing apples, with my grandma’s expertise and company.
It was a special weekend. A weekend where I was truly present.
I was so thankful for my home, my yard, the trees, for all that they provided for me.
And I was so thankful for my grandma. For taking the time out of her busy schedule to teach me a task that to her, was probably old news, but to me was the start of something new and exciting.
Not to mention that my grandma’s presence is truly special in itself. From the moment I see her and give her a warm welcome hug, I am beaming with joy and love.
As I was working away I was also reminded of my Papa. Another very special person in my life. He passed away less than a year ago. Apple sauce was one of our many “things”. Every time I came for a visit he would send me home with apple sauce (and probably potato soup too) and many evenings after being at my grandparents for supper, we would sit down to have a bowl of apple sauce and cream for dessert.
I surrounded myself with these loving memories and felt very close to my Papa in those moments.
All in all, it was one of my favourite weekends this summer. And it was such a simple weekend. I guess true happiness does come from the simple things in life.
So to commemorate that weekend, to celebrate thanksgiving (which is nearly here) to say thank you to the apples, the apple trees, my grandma and papa I created this piece.
Fruitful Fall
I hope you sense the gratitude and joy from this piece. Even while you simply look at it on your screen.
If you would like to see this piece in person, and surround yourself in it’s gratitude and love, I am happy to say it is now for sale at Inspire Studio in Minnedosa! Feel free to stop by to take a look.
May the messages from today’s piece inspire us to incorporate daily gratitude practices into our life. May we realize that joy is a choice, we just have to look for it and choose it. And may we be open to the perspective that true happiness can come from the simplest of times, doing the most mundane and ordinary tasks.
Have a sunny day!
Hugs,
Emily
