Oh hello spring, you sexy thing! Now, without causing any offence to her neighbouring seasons (summer, winter, I love you too) isn’t spring just the best? It’s the same feeling I get when autumn swings by, I think it’s the essence of change that really draws me in. New beginnings, new growth, more sunshine, more flowers.... All of these really encapsulate what spring is to me.
So, as I’m sat here with a cup of fresh coffee, taking in the scent of my freshly henna’d hair (more about that later), looking out over the garden to see the sunshine just brushing over the trees and the birds perching on the feeding table, I feel good. Like, really good. I feel calm and that’s something I haven’t been for a while it feels.
I believe it’s a combination of a few things:
Eating well. I’ve significantly upped my plant intake and reduced my meat/by-product intake. I’m becoming more aware of what I put in my body, for I want nutrients and energy, not quick-fixes and sluggishness. I still eat meat occasionally and I’m not quite ready to give up my beloved cheese just yet, but I believe that reducing my intake somewhat is better than not doing anything at all.
Cutting out wheat. This has been a big one. Every Friday I’ve been indulging in the infamous ‘Fat Friday’ butty run at work (well, I can hardly help it since I run the whole thing). Every Friday I’ve felt terrible. Really run down, sluggish, tired, and I put it all down to wheat/gluten. As I've mentioned before, wheat is a big, massive no-no where FODMAPs are concerned (N.b. it's the fructans (carbs) in wheat that are the issue, not the gluten (protein)) and I've mostly been abiding by the no-wheat rule... Just those Fridays are the downfall.
Getting more sleep. As I’ve been out of the house and cat/house sitting, I’ve been spending less time watching the TV and more time either catching up with the world or just having some quiet time cuddling the cat. You can call it whatever you want really, but it’s helped my sleep patterns a lot.
Mindfulness. I’m due to start my meditation/mindfulness classes officially on Tuesday, but I’m spending a lot more time in the here and now, listening to every sound, watching everything, tasting every bite. When you're taking in every little thing that exists around you, it's incredible. You start to appreciate the little things more, the fact that we are alive and (mostly) healthy.
More light. Equinox literally means ‘equal night’ so that means that at this moment in time, daylight and night time hours are thereabouts equal. As we (Northern Hemisphere) tilt closer and closer to the sun, our daylight hours increase. This is good news for me and others who feel the wrath of the long nights over winter...
... And then maybe it's the fact that on Friday I'll be jumping in my car and driving to the wonderful city of Plymouth where I lived for 3 years during my undergraduate degree, catching up with old best friends, reminiscing about old memories and adventures and creating new ones.
Happy days.
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