It’s me, hi, sorry
This newsletter, is what, a month late? May has been jam-packed. And since announcing the sunsetting of Five Things in it’s current form, I’ve done my little bad at goodbyes dance and just ignored the issue all together.
I graduated with my Master’s, and since seeing the doctoral hats up close and reading “The Art of Gathering” I am googling “PhD in Organizational Behavior” … we’ll see. Probably not. Maybe. I don’t know. I like my job too much. But, what if?
Back to the newsletter of it all: this week I got a fresh wind of inspiration to write. I’m going to ride that wave through July, one month past the five year birthday of Five Things. If you are a free subscriber, hang on as long as you want. If you are a paid subscriber, follow your bliss. I won’t say no to your support, never, but I don’t know what a paid perk will be, at all. So again, follow your bliss. Every newsletter Substack reminds me to “insert a subscribe button” which I might still do.
Remember my poll phase? Let’s bring it back:
Life is good! I got a new dryer! Here is a previously unpublished photo of me and a horse and my friend Harper.
Number One: Leaning into ~experiencing~ God
I’m a leader on my church’s Alpha course this Spring, and one thing we talk about on Alpha is that God is not just something you can know about, but that you can experience God. Which, I’ll be honest set off ~woo woo~ alarm bells in my mind at first. I have some “is it the Holy Spirit or is it the more likely explanation?” Tendencies. Anyway, I’ve been trying to lean more into the experience of it all. Right now that looks like getting outside early in the day without my AirPods, and saying yes to things I would have let other people taken care of. Stay tuned for more.
Number Two: Muting group texts
I try to have only a few notifications live on my phone. Texts and calls come to my Home Screen. I get breaking news alerts from the New York Times, but I don’t click through on them because I learned if you do, you only get more. Sometimes ESPN will let me know something’s going on with WWE. And I have muted almost every single group text I’m in. I love group texts, I’m good in a group text. But when my phone is buzzing off the table, because three people have taken the afternoon off work, it’s really just not good for my peace.
I have never missed an important announcement by muting a group text. Protect your peace, mute a group text today.
Number Three: My favorite shirt is on sale
My go to, absolutely favorite outfit is this shirt from Old Navy and jeans, or shorts. I call it my Ina Garten look and I wore it on my first date with Chris. It makes an appearance it at least once a week. And Old Navy is having 50% right now. I was gong to buy a third (I have two already) but I really am trying to live an abundant life unencumbered by extreme excess. Be blessed.
Number Four: Trader Joe’s Wafer Chocolate Bar with Peanut Butter
I have a new favorite candy and it is the Trader Joe’s Wafer Chocolate Bar with Peanut Butter. I’m allowed to have one a week. I keep it in the fridge and eat it one inch at a time. Perfect crunch. Perfect amount of saltiness. Yum.
Number Five: could this be what’s next?
Part of my tiredness with Five Things is that I am sort of running out of things. Sort of, I also don’t want to be like recommending every product I buy all the time. No one loves my life more than me, but it’s just like not that aspirational, ya know? I mean that in the most content way.
I have been keeping a list of 1000 things I’m thankful for for close to a decade now. When I get to 1000, I start back at one. There’s so much I’m grateful for, and in my morning pages this week I realized that the little things I like also provide good material for longer writing. “Longer writing” is a bold claim.
This is what I wrote this week about “Being in an oatmeal phase”:
About once a quarter I find myself scooping dry oatmeal into a coffee mug to be covered with brown sugar, cinnamon, a pinch of salt and almond milk. I really only ever eat half a serving, left with a glob to scoop into the trash can. It feels nice to start the day this way.
Stay tuned for more.