March is here! We are one day closer to the official start of spring. If you are a midwesterner like myself, I am sure you are just as excited for consistent comfortable weather aka jeans and a sweatshirt weather aka you don’t need to reach for a winter coat. I’m looking forward to trading my winter boots in for my neglected sandal collection!
Although the winter here is harsh and I often find myself wondering why Jim and I still live here, I truly do love our seasons. And even though I do not get into winter activities and would prefer to stay indoors, I find this time of year to be the season when I do my best reflecting and when I feel the most creative and inspired. It is likely due to the fact that I have completely slowed down and actually have the mental space to sort out my goals and plans for the upcoming year.
The past two years has been a strange and difficult ride for all of us. We have all experienced this time in different ways and I think we could all agree it has been a rollercoaster of emotions. I’ve been working from home for just about two years and that alone was a mental up and down. 6 months in I thought I was going to have an anxiety attack and just wanted to go back into the office. Then a year passed and I started to feel more comfortable. Now I will go back to the office at the end of March and I don’t feel ready. Thankfully, I’ll be able to work from home twice a week, so I will take that as a solid win and great balance.
The forced slow down for me was a blessing in disguise. I am notorious for committing to too many things and spreading myself thin. When 2020 stopped us in our tracks, I was actually quite relieved. Saying no to things was simpler and I truly learned what I wanted to continue to say yes to and what was not bringing me joy. Coincidently my word of 2020 was boundaries and little did I know how many boundaries would be in place!
In the past two years I feel as though I understand myself better than when 2020 started. I’ve gotten the time to realize the direction I want to go with certain projects and that makes me excited. I knew I wanted to update my photography website in 2021 and always said I would get to it. But for those twelve months my website sat with an “under construction” page. I wasn’t feeling inspired and I wasn’t sure what vibe I was going for.
It finally struck me in January of this year. I wanted a website that helped encompass all the things I was trying to do, such as my podcast and this blog. All of the extra “side” projects I do have one thing in common: I do them so I can connect with people. I love connecting with others and learning other people’s stories. I have always found people interesting and I think that everyone has something that makes them unique and worthy of being heard. This is probably why I have found myself in jobs that require me to listen to people and help them. I truly can’t imagine having a career that didn’t involve connecting with people on a deeper level.
When I realized that I wanted a website to encompass all of this and what is truly “me”, that is where I decided to use Living Happy with Mallorie as basically a brand. I’m not trying to sell anyone happiness, but instead trying to radiate happiness when I can to anyone who needs it.
I’m very much looking forward to offering a space for anyone. Whether you need photography or are just here to read random thoughts on the internet or listen to a podcast episode that makes you smile. It honestly feels a little strange as we all crawl out of the darkness that was the past two years and into a more “normal” social life again. We may feel a little awkward in this for a bit, but connection is power and so needed for all of us. It may look different than it did before 2020, but that’s ok too! Change can be so good for us.
I’m happy you are here!
-Mallorie
http://www.livinghappywithmal.com
Facebook: @livinghappywithmal Instagram: @livinghappywithmalloriephotos Podcast: https://anchor.fm/mallorie-gran
#happy #gratitude #life #livehappy #behappy #selfcare #lifestyle