Taking Time to Stop and Think

Things have changed recently.

It’s been a really busy year for me. At Christmas, David and I decided it was time to plan a big trip to Malawi, the country where I grew up and which I haven’t yet been back to. My African soul was shouting out that it needed to be nourished and I was feeling out of sorts as a result. So, one big trip started to be planned and saving commenced. How exciting!

Then we decided to move house which meant that all thoughts our African trip went on hold and weekends started to be filled with house-hunting and thoughts of DIY at our current place so we could make it look shiny and new for someone else. Saving every spare penny continued with a renewed focus. Exciting, but also quite stressful, and increasingly so given the current economic gloom.

I also put my studies on hold - a part-time degree in nutritional medicine which I do in my “spare” time.

And, somehow, some of the joy went out of my life. I didn’t really notice it happening, I was too focused on balancing everything and planning for how things would change for us.





Seeing friends was difficult as our weekends were no longer quite so free and going out for a bite-to-eat after work was difficult as we were saving money. My usual jaunts to exciting foodie shops and markets were curtailed as I focused on using up the food in our bulging kitchen cupboards. And time together was usually focussed on tasks that needed sorting out as a result of the possible move.

Thankfully I noticed the change in energy within myself and around me. I had a mini revelation – this is the only life I’m going to have and I really should be making it as happy, joyous and fulfilling as possible. Doing things which give me pleasure should never be stopped at the expense of “sorting stuff out.”

And that’s when things changed.

I had a big rethink about how I spend my time, the people I love and the things which make me feel happy. We’re still planning to move but the holiday is back on. We’re still saving and using up things but I’m also allowing myself the time to be creative in the kitchen and, if we want to treat ourselves to a bottle of champagne, well that’s just fine.

My studying is about to be put on semi-permanent hold as I’m no good at distance learning. Instead of having my nose in the books, I’m going to focus on something practical and creative. I’m going back to an old love of mine - urban photography.

I feel at peace again and I’m so glad.

In some ways it feels very indulgent sharing this with you, but refocusing my time on things which bring me joy has had such a big impact I thought I’d share, in case some of you, or people around you, are in a similar space to where I was.

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This Post was written by abby from eat the right stuff.