"Heart" Health Matters

Hello loves!

Want to hear a fun fact about February? It's National Heart Month!

This probably isn't surprising. After all, February has Valentine's Day, a holiday all about hearts. (And it's the month right after New Years when some people---myself included---might need a reminder on keeping up their fitness goals.)

The heart is important. It's the organ we associate with pretty much everything. It's a symbol of love and life. It's synonymous with words like "center," "core," and "essence."

Physical heart health matters, of course it does. We need our hearts to work so that we can work. Obviously take care of the organ in your chest. But I think there's another type of "heart health" that is just as important, yet it's so easy to overlook too.

In honor of the season of love and passion, I want you to think about something you're passionate about. Something that brings you joy---real joy. I'm talking about the things that make you genuinely lose track of time because you're so caught up in what you're doing.

Recently, I've been thinking back to the things I enjoyed doing as a kid. The activities and crafts and stupid, "timewasting" sh*t that I did solely because I loved it. Sometimes with friends, sometimes by myself, it didn't matter. What mattered was getting lost in the enjoyment of being and doing.

Lately when I've talked to adults about what they do in their free time, it seems to fall into two categories: Being Only and Doing Only.

The Being Only is mindless activities. Binging TV, scrolling on social media, laying in bed and staring at the void, etc. These are the types of things that don't require much (if any) effort from you. You don't really have to think or fully pay attention, you just simply exist.

The Doing Only is what happens when people use their free-time to "get ahead." Turning what was once a fun hobby into a money making side hustle. Turning every interaction into a networking opportunity, not for true connection, but for the chance to climb up the social or corporate ladder. Using every self-care trick and therapy crash course to make yourself better, better, better.

To clarify, I think Being Only and/or Doing Only phases are fine. People trying to start their own businesses are definitely in a Doing Only mindset those first few months. And I think it's safe to say we've all had a Being Only weekend after a rough work week. There's nothing wrong with the phase, because it's temporary.

The issue is when you live in one of these phases. The people I've met who consistently spend all their free time watching a screen (and I mean watching, not posting or creating anything) are the same ones who feel like life is passing them by. The people I know who've tried to turn every activity they enjoy or are good at into a side hustle end up sucking the fun out of what they do.

As adults, I think we forget how important it is to just be and do. Responsibilities from work and home crowd our minds. Bills and rising expenses keep us in states of stress. Sudden life changes throw a cloud of uncertainty over the future, and make us panic. People fall into a grind mindset, which inevitably leads to burnout, or worse.

Life is hard. Sometimes it downright sucks. It can be unfair and stressful and overwhelming. But that's why it's so important to make space for those moments of joy. For those glimmers of light in the dark that remind us what truly matters in life.

So, instead of binge watching eight seasons of a show, have a game night with friends. Instead of forcing yourself to craft the trendiest and most sellable crochet item, make something different, just because you like it. Try a new recipe. Go to karaoke. You might burn the food or sing off-key, but that's okay.

Perfection has never been a requirement of joy.

Love y'all!

"A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person's strength."--Proverbs 17:22