From Kris
To be content means that you are in a state of peaceful happiness. Are you content? Think about that question; you don’t have to answer right now.
Living in pandemic times has been an opportunity for us to think about what things really make us happy and bring us peace. Many of us have chosen to give up travel, attending public events, and even family gatherings in an effort to do our part to keep ourselves and those around us safe and healthy. That has meant that we are spending most of our time at home in our safe bubble. That was a big change for me.
As it turns out, it was a change that brought me much contentment…admittedly, though, that took some time…and retirement!
Right now I am grateful for the slowed pace of my life, a pace that affords me the opportunity to sleep a little later (and stay up a lot later) and enjoy multiple cups of coffee in the morning before getting dressed and officially starting my day. Full disclosure: “getting dressed” has taken on new meaning as well but that is a topic for another post!
This slowness has encouraged me to pay careful attention to the rhythm of my days. When am I hungry? When do I get tired? When is my most creative period? When am I most energetic? What things are most deserving of my time and energy? What makes me feel whole? Making the mental space to figure these things out is what has led to an overwhelming feeling of contentment. In my opinion, this is the greatest gift that we can give to ourselves.
Does contentment mean that everything is perfect? Nope. Does it mean that some days are still a struggle? You bet. Does it mean that there are days I don’t have the mental or physical energy to do the things I need or want to do? Most certainly. Does it mean that there are changes that I’d like to see in my life? Possibly.
The thing about contentment is that at the end of the day when the moments of our lives are distilled down to the bottom line, we find ourselves resting in that state of “peaceful happiness.”
As Tracey and I have talked about our shared feelings of contentment, we have checked in with one another to make sure that we are not mistaking contentment for complacency or laziness. Lol.
We may have been lazy (unwilling to use energy) when it came to writing blog posts. This one has been in the works for a month. We’ve talked about it…many times. We just didn’t get it done. That’s what happens when we are the boss of us. :-). Both being only children, our lives have always been shaped by the shoulds and ought-tos necessary to meet the expectations of others. That has created in each of us an unhealthy dose of perfectionism. Allowing ourselves the freedom to make our own rules definitely helps our mutual feelings of contentment.
The more healthy tendency of perfectionists is to not fall into the realm of complacency, a place that seems to carry with it a somewhat negative connotation. Complacency assumes that one is perhaps smug or has an uncritical satisfaction with one’s place in life. It is hard for perfectionists not to be critical of themselves; maybe contentment brings with it critical satisfaction. In other words, right now, today, I am happy in this place, in my skin; but, I am open to changes, to adjustments, to shifts in perspective and perception that might better serve me tomorrow.
As for today, I am content.
From Tracey
I concur that Kris and I have talked about this quite a few times and that’s how the idea for this post was born. It likely was a conversation about being home that started it. And it would have been something about being perfectly happy to be home, that we’ve got plenty to entertain ourselves with right where we were at! The concept of contentment definitely applies.
Maybe it was being an only child, who lived kind of isolated (until I had a driver’s license of course, lol) – by isolated I mean I was in more rural area, not on a block with lots of kids running around to play with just next door etc. – that taught me how to entertain myself to be content where I was at. My mom used to laugh that even if I had nothing to occupy my time with, I would *invent* something.
Kris is right, living in pandemic times really reinforced some things and some reflection on contentment. I’ve discovered I don’t miss shopping in stores one bit – I’m perfectly content with online shopping. I can get almost everything I need delivered right to my door – it saves me time (and money – I know my pocketbook is happier without the impulse buys that are inevitable when you’re in the store). Now granted, living where I do, I was already proficient at shopping online for things that weren’t readily available in my immediate vicinity, but I came to seriously rely on it in pandemic times. Maybe that’s another thing that helped me adapt, I was already set up for being at home more than the usual!
It’s also helped me realize just what makes me happy to have or do. Being home more than the norm allows a lot of time for me to figure out that I’m pretty simple in what makes me happy and content. I don’t need a lot of “things” – just particular things. So instead of randomness, I’ve been able to get down to more of exactly what I want. Yarn. Lots and lots of yarn makes me content. Cookie decorating supplies are a source of contentment – knowing I have what I need to what I’d want to do (even though I’ve been a serious slacker in the cookie decorating department the past couple years – I discovered that knitting has less calories and my “ingredients” don’t really have an expiration date). Creative outlets – and the supplies to create with – bring contentment for me. Are there things I’d still like to have? Yep, but they aren’t things that “I just gotta have to be happy”, if I get them, Yay! If not, that’s ok too. It was even more reinforced when I was trying to think of what I wanted for my birthday this year, and I couldn’t really think of anything, other than ways to feed my knitting obsession! 😀
As far as my person, there’s always room for improvement there – most of the time I’m content with me. But that doesn’t mean stagnant either – I’m always up for learning something new or improving myself somehow. Being content, in my opinion doesn’t mean completely standing still. I’m content in the process of betterment, improving my mind (currently teaching myself to crochet because I’d like some basic skills when I run across the occasional pattern that just has to be crochet, no knit alternative) and improving my body as best I can. The process alone brings a form of contentment because I know I’m doing good things for myself. The minor struggles now will pay off, and there’s a definite contentment in that notion!
I, like Kris, am content for today!