Amateur Hour

I haven’t written a blog post in forever. I was listening to Annie F. Down’s new book That Sounds Fun: The Joys of Being an Amateur, the Power of Falling in Love, and Why You Need a Hobby, as you may have guessed from the title of both the book and this blog post, I was stopped in my tracks by the chapter on being an ametuer. She challenged the reader to think of something they loved doing or think they might love doing but have avoided it because they’re afraid they might not be an instant pro at it. My first thoughts were about how I know so many people who do that, let the fear of failing keep them from hobbies, but not me. I’m an excellent amateur painter, and cook, and even poet. Heck, I even did a yoga challenge recently, and I am NEVER going to be a pro at yoga.

Yet, for some reason, I paused the audiobook after that chapter. I knew I wanted to think about it before I kept listening. What was I not letting myself do? I am in counseling school and often the professors will say something along the lines of “go do something kind for yourself after class”. I usually feel stumped by that prompt. I’m not great at being kind to myself.

We’ve had enough conversations in class that I know eating an entire package of Oreos or bag of chips guilt-free, isn’t their definition of being kind to oneself. It’s also not doing a face mask and taking a bubble bath. It’s not online shopping or repeating positivite phrases. There’s nothing wrong with either of those self -care methods, but in order to be kind to oneself you have to listen first. Being kind to oneself, isn’t cookie-cutter, one size fits all, or even one method works for me all the time.

First, being kind means listening. Am I craving a snack and some alone time? Or is being kind to myself calling a friend or is it going for a walk? Maybe being kind to myself is realizing the emotional toll that class took and skipping my yoga video to go to bed early. Maybe it’s sticking to my goals and doing that yoga video.

Maybe the self-care industry is a joke because, to be honest, self-care is HARD. To care well for oneself and other people requires work, deep listening, and listening without judgment. In a world that moves fast extra work feels not worth it. Can’t I just slap a bandaid (or a face mask) on my problems and feel better?

What does any of this have to do with being an amateur or blogging? Well, I realized, that I miss blogging. I journal, but I love the rush of having an audience. I like editing my words and trying to be funny. I like adding my amateur photography into my story. I hope that somehow my thoughts will connect with others and help them. Yet, I’m painfully aware that I missed the age of blogging. Most people prefer 30-second TikTok videos. Even my close friends have admitted to me that they don’t read my blogs, they tried, but they got behind.

Therefore, I let not being a “pro” keep me from this space. The same way I let the hard work of self-care keep me from trying to be kind to myself.

Well no more! (I say triumpantly while also knowing, I might fail. And well that’s ok.)

Instagram Worthy Quotes

If you’re new to my blog this is where I typically post a quote that really got to me from something I have been reading. However, today I am going to post a poem that is loosely inspired by what I have been learning.

Deeply Spiritual

Well that’s all for now folks! What do you want to be an amateur at? What do you find deeply spiritual? What does self-care mean to you? (I love coments!!!)

p.s. I used pictures from fall in GA (even though it is February) because I’m completely jealous of those currently posting pictures of the snow covered lives, and I am blatently going to ignore that it is winter in Georgia because it just makes me sad.