Long ago a colleague prepared a beautiful lunch each day. At school, she unrolled her pretty placemat and retrieved delicious lunch items from her beautiful lunch bag. She made the daily school lunch ritual an elegant affair. She turned the ordinary into extraordinary in a celebratory way. It was impressive. Similarly, my mother-in-law met each day with a similar routine that allowed her to live in a well-cared for, warm, and welcoming home with positive, life-enriching daily routines.
Too often we reserve our special attention and efforts for special events that happen now and then instead of infusing that special attention into our daily, ordinary events. We do that because our time is limited--we're too busy to give our days, events, and the people in our lives special attention. That colleague and my mother-in-law had time and made time to translate the ordinary to extraordinary.
Now that I have a bit of extra time, I want to think about how I can infuse more attention into daily living. What can I do?
Delicious, healthy meals
Making time to plan and prepare delicious, healthy foods elevates daily living.
Positive, healthy activity in beautiful spaces
Rather than do the same-old, same-old activities daily, there's opportunity to get outside and explore extraordinary spaces that exist close to and away from home.
Simple, warm, inviting spaces
Create simple, warm, inviting spaces at home and in the yard that inspire the best of you, your time, and activities.
Pursuits
Spending time on a host of positive pursuits that uplift your life and the lives of others.
These are some simple ways to translate the ordinary into extraordinary. Onward.