Well-Being in Full Bloom: Making Space for Something New
Art Direction and Photograph by: Catie Menke. Model: Stephanie Alexandra.
Copy by: Jeni Fjelstad
Model: Stephanie Alexandra
Creative Direction: Catie Menke
Cultivating personal well-being is a whole lot like growing adorable potted plants.
There’s no end in sight for our collective obsession with succulents and plant-filled spaces. I have four little plants nestled on my windowsill. I open the blinds during the day so they can soak up the sunlight, water them regularly, and propagate the new growths.
Raising my petite potted plants has taught me about caring for my own well-being. I’m hoping to offer some encouragement and inspiration for you to make space in your own life for something new and exciting.
Art Direction and Photograph by: Catie Menke. Model: Stephanie Alexandra.
I’ll admit that three of my plants are exactly the same. It’s a three or four inch tall, tree-like green flower. At its healthiest, the stem and lower leaves start to shrivel up and fall off. Then, new blooms start to sprout off, ready to move to their own pots.
Similarly, people need to cut the baggage to be able to move in a new direction. Maybe that’s cleaning out your closet and making donations. Or possibly it’s reevaluating your values and goals regularly. Perhaps it’s saying goodbye to people or activities that no longer fit into your life.
Recently, I’ve cleaned out unused apps from my phone, set watch time limits on certain apps, and gotten comfortable with the personalized work time modes in the settings. Getting rid of an hour spent lost in social media and resetting my virtual space frees up mindspace for things in the outside world that really matter to me.
Think of it like a little spring self-cleaning, your time to shed the unnecessary and let the dried up leaves fall to the soil.
There are so many reasons that stop me from trying new things. My schedule is too busy and full. I tried that once and hated it. I’m afraid it wouldn’t be enjoyable or that I’d fail. So many reasons.
But that thinking has never gotten me to a place of well-being and joy.
What has? New opportunities and taking chances.
We make friends by talking to unexpected people and opening up in new ways. We find hobbies by trying things we hadn’t before. We find our favorite TV shows, podcasts or movies by taking recommendations from others about what’s new.
The new sprout grown by trying any new activity could be the most beautiful one yet.
I tried hammocking just last summer when my friend got me one as a birthday present. I was afraid at first to trust my weight to the ropes, and I knew if I fell, it’d be into a lake. But I went for it anyway. Now, I beg my friends to hang out in parks with close together trees so we can enjoy my newfound hobby.
Another time, I played basketball in an intramural league tournament for one night only. Since it was my first ever basketball game, I wasn’t great. But my friends and I had so much fun trying it together. The unforgettable memories (and free t-shirt) mark the experience as a new thing worth trying.
I’m sure I could give you a hundred more examples of new experiences that went well —and ones that didn’t— but the point is, it could cultivate your well-being too.
Join a group you’ve been thinking about, take a crack at the hobby you’ve been eyeing, or try something totally out of your league just for laughs. You might just end up with a sprout in need of a new pot.
Thankfully you’ve already shed your lower leaves and have plenty of room and energy to sprout even more wonderful things. Your joy for living, inner peace, or however you measure your own well-being could just blossom.
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