We’ve had a long stretch of dark, gray days. During the pandemic (especially in winter), daily life rarely changes. When the light doesn’t change either, it leads to blahness. That’s how I feel: blah. Today the same as yesterday. Tomorrow, nothing special.
I dreaded making my daily video—I feel so blah!—until I realized: the video is about blahness, which is a natural human experience. Some days we feel crappy. Some days we feel awesome. Some days we feel blah. Some days we feel inspired. Often, we feel a mixture of these emotions.
As soon as I named my unmotivated, ambivalent feelings, I felt better. It can be that simple: express the difficulty, embrace its reality, laugh a little, and then move forward. This video series helps me to name “what’s real,” and that very naming creates a shift. It’s the pretending that exhausts us.
Mindfulness encourages me again and again to embrace all of life (not just the good stuff). Without blahness, I wouldn’t fully appreciate motivation, purpose, and creativity. Without cloudy days, I wouldn’t fully appreciate sunshine. Without periods of isolation, I wouldn’t fully appreciate the profound belonging that comes from human connection.