Tag: joy connections

music and distraction and joy…

I love music. Lots of different kinds of music.

I love music just for the music itself, but when I’m feeling stressed or anxious music can provide even more than enjoyment. It can be a way to shift my mood and offer distraction (at least somewhat) from the difficult stuff.

In our home, we have a local radio station playing in the kitchen literally all day long. This station plays music from the 70s through the current time, and we love how much air play the DJs give to our favorite music decades of the 70s and 80s. We also really enjoy the special interviews and features they do at regularly scheduled times. (And yes, there are actual, human, real-life in real-time DJs on the air.) It provides background sound for the day, it keeps me company when I’m in the kitchen cooking or painting or washing dishes, and it generally brings joy to our lives.

Although the kitchen radio provides most of the music in our house, I’ll also turn to the CDs we still have in our collection, as well as music online. Sometimes when I’m feeling anxious or stressed I’ll go to youtube and find a long video or playlist containing lots of 70s or 80s songs, and I’ll listen to the music while I do nothing else other than relax and breathe. Almost always, it will help.

Are there songs or genres/periods of music that help you feel more uplifted? That help you feel calmer if you’re feeling stressed or anxious? That help you feel more capable of making it through a hard day?

Music can reflect mood, definitely. But music can also impact mood and shift mood. It can be useful for calming and de-stressing.

It can be an important tool in an anxiety-reducing, stress-reducing toolkit.

❤

revisiting genealogy as calming distraction…

I’ve written before about genealogy (as well as looking through old newspapers) serving as calming distraction for me. I enjoy genealogical research and exploring old newspapers anyway, but the calming and distracting aspects for me add to their benefits.

As so often happens, I’ve had periods lately of intense anxiety. I spend time with my usual tools and helpers: painting, praying, porch time, reading, brain retraining, hanging out with my husband, watching “comfort” shows, talking with friends…and, yes, spending time with genealogy (and newspapers.com and findagrave.com and facebook groups focused on the history of my family’s area).

Trying to fit the puzzle pieces together that make up my family tree. Researching places and businesses where my relatives worked or spent time. Learning about what was going on when my great-grandparents (and beyond) were alive.

Doing this gives my brain something to focus on instead of fearful thoughts about the future.

Although any aspect of this can be helpful and enjoyable and lead to new discoveries or confirmations, there are certain things that have captured my attention in a deeper way. I turn to these again and again as I try to learn more about them.

My father’s paternal grandparents fall into this category. An old abandoned and mostly-vanished factory cemetery is another one. A long-standing building in my hometown is also on my list. Another is a church that, over the last 130-plus years, has changed names and merged and moved.

I dip in and out of researching these people and places. They are smaller “pet projects” under the larger umbrella of genealogy and local research, and they give me familiar things I can pull out and give attention to whenever I want.

They are calming distractions I keep in my toolbox of things that help when the anxiety is high…or things I can focus on simply because I want to spend time with them.

I don’t know if I’ll ever uncover more details or find more answers to the questions I have about these people and places, but I enjoy the exploration.

And that’s why I keep on researching.

♥

gelli plate play…

Almost a decade ago, I got three gelli plates of different sizes, used them a few times during the first few weeks of having them…and then didn’t touch them again for years.

Last summer I put them into one of the boxes of items we were donating to the local animal shelter’s thrift store, thinking I probably wouldn’t do anything with them anymore. After all, if I hadn’t used them in so long, why keep them around? I’ve been in a lengthy and ongoing process of trying to declutter and downsize (a process which is a big challenge for me) and I count it as a win any time I make any progress, no matter how small. But right before my husband carried that particular box to the car, I pulled out the smallest gelli plate to keep. Just in case I changed my mind and wanted to use a gelli plate again.

And I’m so glad I kept it.

During this time of my personal at-home summer art retreat, I was encouraged by a friend and a few videos to get out my little gelli plate and give it a go. I let myself play. And I had fun.

I made prints on papers I plan to tear and cut to use on journal pages. I started decorating some unused tags I’ve had stored away for years that maybe I’ll (finally!) start using in mixed media projects. I didn’t worry about how any of it turned out, I simply enjoyed experimenting and playing.

Do you have an art supply you haven’t used in a while – and thought you might not ever use again? Or maybe a supply you put away but haven’t tried out?

It could be that one day you end up surprising yourself the way I did…and discover it brings you a sense of play and joy you didn’t expect.

♥