Hello? Anyone?
“Hello, hello, hello….”
“I’m back, back, back again…”
Taps computer; okay SHAKES computer….
“Payaso, is this thing still working!? Do you remember how I log in?”
No, really, “Hello? It’s me…”
Well, friends, it’s been over two years since I’ve posted anything on this blog-o-mine and I thought the time for me to share some recipes and adventures was long overdue. Who cares if it only took me 40 minutes to try to remember how to log in – oops! “Forget about it…”
On a weekly basis, the blog site I use sends me a summary of the number of people who have come to the blog and I am able to see what recipes/posts people have searched – FUN! To those who keep coming back despite a lack of new content I say, “THANK YOU!” When I last looked, there were just over 5,000 visits to the website since its inception in 2018.
It’s such a strange time in all of our lives. COVID-19 has disrupted so much for so many. Some have lost jobs. Some feel isolated. Some may be hurting. Introverts may have found enlightenment. One’s inability to connect with friends may be triggering past trauma of neglect, rejection or a cornucopia of any other emotional insecurities. The emotional consequences of the pandemic should not be ignored or underestimated (steps off soap box). Heck, I eat my emotions on the daily.
The Payaso and I have been working from home since the middle of March. The two of us. The two dogs. The two cats. Just over 1100 square feet. Since March. I love you, Payaso! It’s actually been a blessing to have this time in our beautiful home together.
I, like the rest of non-attorney staff, go into the office at least once a week at the request of the Board of Directors of the firm. It’s my one outing a week as the Payaso and I take the mandates and guidelines serious on account of my diabetes. Wisely, the Payaso’s company has decided to allow their teams to work from home until at least January, 2021 (smart cookies they are!). During this time, I’ve tried to focus my energy on the positive, our fur-babies and the love of my life. Even still, I can tell something has been missing.
There’s been a sort of lull in my life and an inability to put a label or place my finger on it and I’m confident it’s not COVID-related. Quite the opposite, actually, as COVID has allowed me, an extroverted introvert, to do a tremendous amount of self-reflection to “reclaim my time” in order to find my center, which I think is a never-ending process.
On my side of bed is a nightstand full of stacked books resembling a daunting game of Jenga just waiting to collapse. One sneeze and I’m a goner. About two weeks ago, I was re-reading portions of a book called “Soar” by T. D. Jakes (thank you for the gift, sister!) and I came across a sentence that I needed to read over and over again. “We were created in the likeness of a creative God so that we can draw on that creativity for the innovation required to re-imagine ourselves, reinvent our circumstances and reinvest our gifts.” Re-read that sentence, friends.
Reading that sentence was an “aha” moment for me. Trite as it may sound, it’s true. It made me realize that I was devoting TOO MUCH of MY down time to the j-o-b. A job that allows me to appreciate the work I do, but a job that does not allow for any creative license. Without a commute, I found myself incessantly looking at my phone to see what work emails were non-patiently awaiting my attention outside of “normal” business hours. I had become the dog in Pavlov’s experiment. My not doing anything creative was, in fact, creating an energy that was bringing me down. The time for action was upon me.
So action I took. I’ve been reconnecting to those things that always brought me a sense of joy through creation: taking pictures of food and nature; baking and trying to Frankenstein different recipes from the internet to make them my own; allowing myself to be playful and goofy with the Payaso; and, listening to the powerful message of music.
Perhaps you’re asking “where’s the recipe, gringo!? Where are these pictures of food and nature?”
Friends, the purpose of this post this beautiful fall day is two fold. First, to say hello. To reintroduce ourselves to the adventures I’m about to tell. To bring recipes that I think are worth sharing. Some are my own, but most are compilations of recipes I have found online, adapted and later remembered to write down (thank you, Payaso).
The second is to encourage. Times are hard in many ways for most of us. Find your joy through creativity. Rekindle and remember the gifts you’ve been given and freely share it with others – socially distancing, of course. Be kind. Take deliberate actions to connect with those important to you. Add a comment below – I’ll send you an inspiring quote. Enjoy writing letters? Email me at gringojoe@livinglavidagringo.com. We’re all in this together, friends. Let’s get creative while helping each other in the process! Virtual hugs to all of you. And I promise the next post will be a recipe. PROMISE!
P.S. Please check out Living La Vida Gringo on Facebook, too. I’ve been putting some random fun on FB lately that won’t appear on the blog.