Hello friends, how are you? Hope you have settled into 2025 and are very much looking forward to spring as am I.
Well, last time I was here, I let you all know that I was having some health issues and because of said health issues, I was struggling mightily with anxiety, which was inhibiting my ability to be here and write to you the way that I was normally able to. Some things have changed since then, some have not.
I am still facing a few health challenges which unfortunately, seem to be ongoing. I now have a neurologist to add to my contact list on my phone. There are still questions that need answers and I do not have them all yet. But I continue to move forward and press on.
I have had to learn that there are things within my control, and there are things that are not.
What is in my control, are the little everyday things…
Eating healthfully and exercising.
Reading lots of fiction because non-fiction seems too heavy at the moment. A book that I read which may be of some interest is The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne, the same gentleman who wrote all of the Winnie the Pooh books. He wrote this mystery before the children’s books and that is what he is most known for, but this mystery from 1922, was a real gem. I also liked the dedication to his father, at the beginning.
Going to my weekly bible study and feeling thankful for a group of ladies who truly fill my cup.
Trips to the library and the anticipatory feeling of picking up books that have been held in queue.
Spending time with my family.
Prayer. Lots of prayer.
Having pieces of quiet time in my day.
Visiting the garden center just because and then leaving with lovely pink flowers (beginning photo at the top of this post).
It’s not a complete list, but this is what I’ve been doing and what has been helping me in navigating a health journey that I did not see coming.
I am also ready to be here in this space again :)
I am not sure about the frequency of posts quite yet, but I miss talking to you all and hearing what you have been doing or what you have been up to.
Thank you for still being here and letting me grace your inbox once again.
Please let me know what has been bringing you joy so far this year, I’d love to hear!
xx Mackenzie
Hooray! Nice to have you back and regaining your health. Writing your newsletter may have a great deal to do with continued healing and vigor.
Sorry to hear you’re going through a tough time! I’ve had many seasons (ongoing?) in recent years where reading anything heavy was just too much. I leaned hard into mystery and it was so good for me! The Br Caedfel series by Ellis Peters (if you like historical fiction); the Miss Silver mysteries by Patricia Wentworth (if you like Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple); and of course the Lord Peter Wimsey series by Dorothy Sayers- the audiobooks narrated by Ian Carmichael are wonderful! (Of course those these are all murder mysteries so do have a few things that could be tough depending on your level of sensitivity- mine varies over time.) I also just discovered E.F. Benson’s Mapp and Lucia series, which is so much fun- small village life in 1920s England- and although nothing bad happens somehow they are still full of small dramas:)