Live, Learn, Create More

How much time do you spend on social media each day and are there better, more meaningful things you could be doing with that time? The short answer is likely "too much" and "yes".

We recently had an incident that left our home and my studio without power for about a week and it made me re-evaluate how I choose to spend my time. While the power was out, our evenings at the hotel were spent coordinating repair work, planning for our daily needs (where are we going to do laundry, what will we eat for lunch/dinner, what items need to go back to or come from the house, etc.) and catching up on emails. I spent the days in my chilly studio waiting for/meeting with estimators and contractors, working on my 2023 design and content planning, and doing some weaving to keep my mind focused and occupied.

Even when the switch was flipped and normal life resumed, I had no urge to mindlessly scroll. What I did have was time. More time than I realized or expected. I started to think about what I could accomplish with a few extra minutes... let's be honest, it's extra hours... each day.

I can:

• knit, spin, weave, felt, or create something
• volunteer a few times a month reading to kids at the local library
• become fluent in a foreign language before our next vacation abroad
• catch up with friends
• take a nap
• renovate our poorly designed pantry storage situation
• clean out my garden and plan for spring planting
• clean/card/spin/knit wool for a sheep to sweater project
• read a book or magazine
• go for a hike and enjoy the local wildlife
• mend my favorite flowery skirt so I can wear it next summer

I could keep going, but you probably get the point. All of these things add value and meaning to my life and to the lives of those around me in a way that scrolling never will. Of course some of those things can't be completed in a single day, but I sure can make a lot of progress if I work on them a little each day.