Today’s Quest2015 prompt from author Pam Houston asks us to consider what makes our hearts leap.
Sit quietly and ask yourself, what in the last day or week or month has made your heart leap up? Not what should, or might or always had, but what did. Make that list. Be honest, even if it surprises you. Keep the list with you this month. Add to it when it happens. Train yourself to notice. Then ask your self today, how can I arrange my life to get more of those heart leaps in it?
The list is longer than I expected, which shouldn’t surprise me. I have a lot of different interests.
- Holding the finished 7 Blessings quilt top up to the light and watching it glow like stained glass
- Having a fellow quester compare 7 Blessings to an Australian Opal
- Finding, watching, and sharing Apocalypse Rhyme on Apocalypse Garden and on Facebook
- Dreaming the future shape of the Apocalypse Garden
- My near perfect Apocalypse Garden blogging streak (only one day missed since I started the blog on 9/30/14)
- The Friends of the Library book sale and all its treasures, especially finding a $1 copy of the Book Lover’s Journal and a mint condition copy of The Handmaid’s Tale
- Discovering, browsing, holding, sharing, reading books of all kinds, but especially having them in my space–more than anything else, they are my security blanket, my inspiration, my solace, and my joy
- Finishing CS Lewis’ Out of the Silent Planet (and sci-fi lit in general)
- Watching some amazing, original, risk-taking movies, including Birdman, Twilight Angel, and an old favorite, Strictly Ballroom
- Poetry class taught by Tony Hoagland (and his amazing reading last month)
- Sharing and discussing poetry with my two poet cousins, MJ and Suzanne Marie. whose work and interests are uncannily similar to mine
- Making connections with some amazing fellow questers
- Napping in my casita’s only comfy chair with the man I love
- The koala painting in my bathroom–every time I see it
So how can I arrange my life to get more heart leaps?
Spend more time in the bathroom? But seriously, the answer is simple–prioritize what’s important:
- Quilting
- Poetry
- Books and writing (let’s just call this stories to keep it simple)
- Movies (also stories)
- Art
- People
- My blog (which is set to include all of the items on this list, plus prepping, my favorite OCD obsession)
And stop trying to second-guess what I’ve already decided to focus on in 2015–the Apocalypse Garden. Instead, I should spend my energy this month sorting out just how all that will manifest.