10 WAYS I’M PRACTICING SELF-CARE IN 2019

If 2018 was the year of The Tower, of a personal transformation, then 2019 is the year of the Temperance card from the tarot. Temperance is all about balance, moderation, and patience. Or, as Biddy Tarot puts it,

There is alchemy within Temperance. This Tarot card is about blending, mixing, and combining diverse elements in a way that creates something new and even more valuable than its separate parts. ‘Blending’ can take on many forms; for example, a blended family, an artist who blends different materials or techniques, a bartender who mixes new and exciting cocktails, or a chef who combines different cuisines and cooking styles.

In 2018, I realized not only how it was I wanted to live and what it was that I wanted to create, but that I was capable of living the life I dreamed and creating the work I wanted to create—telling stories of magic and romance, creating magic and beauty and inspiration and sharing those things with others, whether in a blog post, an article, a poem, or a novel.

I began 2019 charging ahead, but I realized that creating that lifestyle, breathing life into that vision, wasn’t about slashing through briars with a sword. I’d done that in 2018—clearing away the old ideas, the false beliefs, the misguided assumptions that held me back.

No, the path was clear.

But I needed to enjoy that path.

Slated for this year is a series of four novellas, each one centered around one of the four elements. In TANGLED ROOTS we explore the element of earth. TANGLED CURRENTS explored water magic, while TANGLED FLAMES is all about the duality of fire. Lastly, TANGLED FEATHERS is about air (there may be ravens).

UPDATE: That series of short novellas has morphed into an epic journey filled with magic, witchcraft, and mystical lore called Witches of Willow Creek: Tangled Magic. The first two books, Tangled Roots and Tangled Fates, are now available, with book three, Tangled Souls, available for pre-order and slated for release on Jan. 11, 2021. It’s been a longer journey than I imagined, but one that I’m enjoying!

I realized I wanted to create these stories from deep within, from center, from spirit. They are very much heart stories, and I want each of them to shine with that light.

In order to do that, to balance creating stories from that well within with refilling it, self-care is essential. No matter what we do, whether it’s writing, making art, crunching numbers, writing code, nursing patients, parenting children, doing volunteer work, or whatever fills our days, self-care is necessary.

I decided to create a list of self-care practices to weave into my life this year. I like this imagery of weaving, of creating our lives as a living tapestry, always changing, shifting, transforming.

So, I sat down, and with heart and intention, created my list.

1. Listen to music.

2. Drink a cup of green tea.

3. Spend a few minutes in nature, weather permitting.

4. 4. In the spring, grow a few shade-loving herbs on my patio, and find a frugal way to turn that space into a sanctuary for slowness and reflection.

5. Read a little every day of something I love, even if it’s just a short scene or chapter.

6. Aim for one day a week where there’s nothing “scheduled” on my day planner. I might still need to throw a load of laundry in the wash or put dinner in the slow-cooker. Having an open day isn’t so much about doing nothing as it is about making space for life to happen, organically, in its own way. That’s the magic.

7. Eat breakfast. I’m not always hungry in the mornings, but even a small bowl of overnight oats would get the day off to a better start.

8. Experiment with Epsom salt bath blends to find one that works best for me.

9. Paint my fingernails.

10. Take a daily multivitamin.

Another Update: As I reread this post in December 2020, I realize how much my idea of self-care has deepened, not just through the storms of 2020, but also through my own personal journey since I penned this post. Some of these will forever remain ways that I “fill the well” (a beautiful song, time in nature, gardening), but others have dropped off the list entirely. It’s not bad, per se, it’s just a reflection of how we all change and grow over the years. We are all works in progress.

What about you? What’s on your self-care list? And remember, it’s not a to-do list where you’re checking things off. It’s not another chore. It’s just something we can turn to when we’re overwhelmed.