What Can I Do For Myself, Today?

Have you ever asked yourself this question: what can I do for myself today?  I know, it seems like a silly question. The way you respond to that question is so important. Often, the things that we think make us happy are not easily accessible or are currently impossible. You might think things like: a vacation will make me happy. My partner listening to me about a specific request would make me happy. Eating a specific meal I am craving would make me feel happy today. Those are all good and great ways to attain happiness, but they do not give you long-term happiness. One very easy way to attain happiness is through hobbies. It turns out that people who have hobbies are overall happier, healthier, and more likely to be relaxed individuals. We all want to live stress-free and have healthier lives. Let’s discover together how having hobbies is great for our mental health as well as our well-being. 

Many times, we tend to be on auto-pilot. Our days pass by so quickly and we don’t even realize all that we did by the time our day is over. For example, for those who have young kids, we wake up and it’s almost like we are going against time. We rush to feed our kids and get them ready for the day. We rush to make dinner and clean before they get home from school. We rush to pick them up and get them ready for the next day and before we know it, it's night time and we are in bed wondering where the time went. It is common that the only self-care we get that day is our cup of coffee in the morning or in the evening. Surprisingly not, that coffee probably got cold before we drank it because of the many interruptions that happen. 

I want you to sit for a second and think about who you were before you became a mother or a wife. Who are you? What did you do when you were bored? What type of things did you enjoy before you had all the responsibilities you have now? Did you enjoy reading a good book? Did you enjoy listening to music or learning a new language? Those things are very important. We cannot forget who we were once we become moms and wives. Actually, in order for us to be great mothers, we must find the best versions of ourselves. We must find happiness in our hearts or our dissatisfaction in life will be projected through the way we treat our children or our significant other. So let’s explore how to find out what your hobbies are and how you can find time to implement them in your life.

My first recommendation is to go to a craft/hobby store. Just take a walk down the aisles of stores like Hobby Lobby or Michaels Craft Store and see what you like. You will be surprised how much inspiration you will get walking down those aisles. You will find that you can create your own seasonal floral arrangements. You could make some and gift them to friends and family for your holiday. You will also find things like yarn that you could use to learn how to make your baby a blanket. There are aisles and aisles full of beads and string where you can learn to make your own jewelry. 

You might be thinking, why would I start a hobby that will make me spend more money than I need to? Well, if you don't want to spend money, there are also many other things you can do as well. Let me share with you a few hobbies you can start that are free! One is writing. I really enjoy writing. I think writing is a wonderful hobby to have, and it's free! Everyone has paper and a writing tool at home. Give yourself a chance to try it and see how it makes you feel. Even if you think it's not for you. If you have never tried it before, just try it! It is great because there are no rules to your writing. You can write anything you want without worrying about grammar or spelling mistakes. You don't need to worry about judgment or opinions about your writing from others because, unless you want to share it, your writing is just for you. Do you feel like you have a story to tell? Do you feel like you have so many feelings or thoughts and ideas in your mind? Just write them down and see where that takes you. Even if you end up throwing it away when you are done, you will feel good about it. I personally feel like most people have gone through some type of trauma or incident in their life that they could probably write about. You never know, you might start writing and you might just end up writing an entire book! You should write in your native language, so it can come naturally to you.

Reading is also a free hobby. All you need is a library card. Once you get your library card, you can check out many books. You can take them home and discover what type of books you enjoy and what genres you do not like reading. You can check out books from another language. Many libraries in Sacramento carry a large selection of Arabic books; you will be surprised and very happy with what you find. You can even find books that teach you how to do something. These are called DIY books, which take me to my next free hobby. 

DIY is a great hobby to have. DIY means Do It Yourself. People that DIY tend to make gifts for others instead of purchasing. Some even create things and sell them right from home. It can be something as simple as making a wreath for your door or painting your bedroom walls and getting creative with it. DIY gives us a great sense of satisfaction. It makes us feel good and accomplished.  It always feels amazing to begin a project and to look at it and admire it once done. DIY can be costly but there are many projects you can create with things that you have at home.

 I once created my own coffee table. It was so simple but I was so proud of it and I admired it every time I walked past it. It felt good to know that I made it rather than bought it. I made it out of wooden crates. I purchased four crates and nailed them together to create a square shape. Then I added wheels to create legs for it and viola! It was an instant coffee table. I then painted and added books and decor items inside the crates. I have no learning experience in DIY but I watched a few videos and read a blog article like this one and started building. We really are capable of more than we think; we really just need to give ourselves the chance to try something new. Hobbies give us that chance and sometimes, people even end up creating a career out of their hobbies. 

 I recently discovered that I enjoyed painting. I was really surprised with myself because it was never something I considered doing. I started painting with my 7-year-old daughter and I saw how much peace it gave me. It made me relax, unwind and free my mind of any thoughts I had lurking back and forth. One day after my kids went to sleep, I pulled out our paint kit and just began painting. Mind you, I am not professional at all. Actually, the painting I was painting was a paint-by-number kit. You match the paint color with the number written on it and on the canvas and you paint. When you are done, you end up with a beautiful professional-looking painting; thanks to the numbers that show me how and where to paint. If your kids have a paint set at home, try painting with them. Paint without any goal of what to create, just paint. 

So what can you do for yourself, today? You can start by making your daily cup of coffee or tea and sitting down to think about what hobby you want to try out. You will find yourself smiling more often, and you will feel more positive and generally happier. When we do things that are solely for our own happiness, without any expectations from anyone, we will feel amazing. Think about it, all day we cook for our families and we hope they will enjoy the meal. We clean the home so they can be comfortable and we are there for them to make sure they succeed. Your children are most likely not doing that for you, so what are you waiting for? Get up and find a way to be even happier.

11.25.22