Self-Care - marykatekopec.com

MK’s Reflections: Patience

MK’s Reflections: Patience

Beautiful Blossom,

Maybe you can relate.

My honeybun tells me, “You have to have patience.”

But, … but. I want it now!

Sometimes we’re talking little stuff, like landscaping and wanting to get my flowers in to see the beauty … but it’s too late in the season. Or I want to go find some pretty rocks to decorate with, but that would mean being around people.

Sometimes we’re talking big stuff, like I keep trying so hard to wellness myself into feeling well again … but it’s taking fooooooooooooorrrrrreeeeeevvvvvvvver! Being a girl is way harder than it looks! Hormones – gah!

Something I’m learning in pandemic times is patience.

With my health compromised and the risk of being around people who may not be vaccinated or willing to wear a mask has made my life one of contact-free, stay-at-home … and all the limitations that come with it.

Prepandemic, going to grocery store was easy. Going anywhere was easy.

Now, I go almost nowhere. To the doctors for medically necessary appointments, and that’s about it. And even then, I’m putting things off that don’t outweigh the possibility of getting sick.

Prepandemic, the world was nicer. It’s not so nice these days. Which, when you are building a house, needing landscaping, needing skilled laborers to help and assist … comes with intimidation, frustration, and a desire to DIY as much as possible.

Prepandemic, we didn’t have supply chain challenges and supply shortages. Now we stock up and wait when there’s no stock.

Patience.

I’ve learned patience.

Where once I would simply run out and get that “thing,” now, if I can’t order it, I don’t get it. And even if I can order it, I wait for it to arrive.

The gift of this is I’ve learned the value of need vs want. I’ve learned the difference between immediacy, and that which can wait. I’ve gained independence and self-sufficiency through home growing food to reduce my reliance on grocery store supplies, among many other new ways of living, like simply learning to consume less – need vs want.

It’s the great silver lining to facing challenges. With open eyes, thought, and reflection, we can learn a lot and adapt. We grow. We get better.

I’d gotten used to the convenience and ease of “just running out to get ‘it.'” Our culture focuses on making our lives easier, more convenient. But those are only two values in a very complex equation of living life.

Patience.
Kindness.
Understanding the difference between need vs want.
Accepting we cannot control the world around us, but we can adapt and grow and find what works best for us.

May we all find the patience we need to get through this pandemic well, healthy, and safe. May we remember kindness helps foster community and positive connectivity, and engage kindness as our MO. May we come to see that need is more important than want and change our focus to what we need. May we accept the challenge before us and use this time to grow and adapt. May the love in our hearts shine through brightly!

I wish you a wonderful day filled with love, big hugs, laughter, and goodness in your belly and your heart!

Tower Garden by Juice Plus+. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

Mary Kate’s Awesome Salad Shooter
Tower Garden by Juice Plus+

Mary Kate’s Awesome Salad Shooter (Tower Garden by Juice Plus+)

Dear Beautiful Blossom!

“What is this glorious salad shooting thing I speak of?” you ask.

OH MY YUMMY GREEN-EATING GOODNESS! So glad you asked.

Let me introduce you to my affectionately dubbed “Salad Shooter”! (I name everything: my trees, my computer, my phone, … it just makes life more fun being surrounded by friendlies!)

My Salad Shooter is delicious green growing goodness!

It’s year round yummy nummies for my hungry tummy!

It’s ease. Convenience. Independence. Self-sufficiency.

My Salad Shooter is the answer to many questions. The solution to problems. My Salad Shooter is easy, happiness, yummy convenience in my kitchen. My Salad Shooter is LOVE!

Why do I have a Salad Shooter (aka Tower Garden by Juice Plus+)?

So just over a year ago, this thing happened. It’s still happening. You may recall and be aware … the pandemic. (BTW: pandemics kinda super suck, … right?!!!!)

Well, so … last year 2 inciting things happened that made me stop and re-evaluate our food supply.

The first was the food shortages and dangers we saw everywhere. Grocery store shelves were empty. Access to food was immediately a health-jeopardizing outing … going to the grocery store could get you sick … and you could die … wuuuuuuuuuut???? (Remember how we were all once washing off all the packaging groceries come in? Well, I was all like, how do you safely wash produce that you don’t cook, like salad and greens?)

The relative safety of normal, everyday outings was gone. And that impacted so many aspects of our lives.

I wanted to be able to eat green without being worried about getting sick from a “community source” of food.

The second thing is that the pandemic made me look at how I live life and my interdependence on others. My reliance on outside factors. My consumption of goods. My impact on the world around me. … And it made me think I needed to use this pandemic time to create a better way of living for me and for my honeybun.

So, when my awesome chiropractor from New Hampshire, Dr. Bryan Natusch (a rep for Tower Garden by Juice Plus+) put a video up on his FB wall of this “new”*** fangled salad growing device he was growing green goodness on, I was all like … What is this glorious salad creator? And we talked and talked. He shared more videos. And I was IN!!!

I hollered out: Send me my Salad Shooter ASAP! And I’ve been growing goodness in my kitchen ever since!!!

*** Tower Garden by Juice Plus+ have actually been around for a while. So when I say “new,” I mean new to me knowing about them.

How Does a Tower Garden (my Salad Shooter) Work?

When I show snaps of my Salad Shooter to peeps, they goggle-eye with a dropped jaw and utter, “That’s. So. COOL.”

I know, right?!!!

And then they ask … how does it work?

The short of it is: water + nutrient solution + air + Tower Garden + seeds + light = Yummy Nummies for your Tummy Tummy.

It’s an incredibly water and energy conserving way to grow your own produce! And the peeps at Juice Plus + made a cool, short but helpful info video which shows you Green Growing AMAZINGNESS!

After the video, I’m gonna share my growing goodness from my most recent starting point with snaps and chat, so you can get an idea of what Green Loving Yummy Goodness I’m talking about. (Inside note: You can replant and start afresh every number of months depending on which plants you’ve grown and their needs.)

The video you are about to see shows you the Flex Tower Garden, and I’ll be showing snaps and chat with my Home Tower Garden. They both work the same. They are different sizes of Tower Gardens: Home (for salads, greens, and herbs) and Flex (for salads, greens, herbs, and many other biggerish plants like tomatoes, watermelon, broccoli, zucchini, celery, and more).

I love my Home (Salad Shooter) so much I recently expanded with a Flex (not named yet). We are finishing our basement with a year round growing area for our Towers and other plants … so I’ll have even more to share as I grow my growing capabilities and experience!!!!!

For now, let’s show you a quick video so you can see how Tower Gardens grow plants. No dirt. Aeroponics = water + nutrient solution + air = yummy nummies for your tummy tummy!

Mary Kate’s Current Growing Cycle Snaps and Chat

Getting Started!

Snaps tell a thousand words … or for us … make us hungry! LOL.

My first snap at first glance looks maybe a little lack luster … cuz it’s just baby plants … seedlings. Buuuuuuuut … a cool thing is that most of my seedlings were ready to transplant onto my Salad Shooter within 2 days. The few remainder seedlings were able to be transplanted 2 days later.

I transplant to my Salad Shooter when the seedlings are about 1 – 2 inches tall. And I use a cool trick I learned while in grad school for growing seedlings up fast. (I did cell biology research in a lab that used pumpkin seedlings as model plants.)

What is this trick? Well, after you put the seeds and water in the seedling tray, you close up the tray and cover it with a towel for a couple of days. The seedlings, desperate to find light quickly will “shoot up” fast.

The faster you get your seedlings onto your Tower, the faster you get to eat yummy nummies!!!

Mary Kate’s Current Growing Cycle Snaps and Chat

The WOW Factor!

Having my Salad Shooter is delight on so many levels!

One: Look how fast salad, greens, and herbs grow!

Two: Getting to eat mouth-watering, super healthy, free-from-pesticides-yucky-chemicals, super green diverse (kale, chard, arugula, leafy greens, herbs … you can grow a tasty, beautiful variety) salads within 3 weeks is AWESOMENESS!!!!

Three: It’s in my kitchen. We harvest practically every day!!! It’s RIGHT THERE! Clean, ready to eat right off of the Tower, and deeeeelicious! (No grocery story. No other human hands, or coughing mouths, sneezing noses, or germy hands touching your delicious food!) Self-sufficiency and independence!!!! I love it!!!!

So … check out real time growing!

A little kale plant baby … growing up so nice and bright and green … for me to devour!
Tower Garden by Juice Plus+. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

Mary Kate’s Current Growing Cycle Snaps and Chat

Let’s Eat!

After about 2 1/2 weeks we were able to harvest our first salads. We each got a medium-ish bowl of salad (bigger than restaurant sized side salads). By a couple of days later, we were eating BIG bowls of salad … like cake mixing size bowl for me and serving dish size for honeybun … every day!!!

To put our salad eating sizes in context to “normal” human salad eating, our daily harvest is enough for a family of four, easily. There’s lots to gobble, and it’s so good for you!!!

Here’s one of my early salads. I go pretty simple … lots of greens, some dried strawberries, walnuts (gotta have those helpful essential fatty acids to help absorb all of the chlorophyll and pigments and phytonutrients in those green leafies!!!)

Isn’t the color gobble-worthy? All that green yumminess!

One of my favorite things to eat is Zasta (pasta with zucchini noodles), or in a pinch, gluten-free pasta with marina sauce, Italian seasoning, mozzarella cheese, HANDFULS of fresh basil (grown on my Salad Shooter), and a sprinkle of parm.

I love how I can green up every meal. Smoothies. Salads. Green on top of pasta … Green, green, green, green, green!

It’s healthy goodness made as easy as walking over to my Salad Shooter and harvesting right onto my plate or into my bowl!

If that doesn’t make you hungry … how can that be??? LOL

So yeah. You may have guessed by now. But I love my Salad Shooter so much I bought the next bigger up Tower to gain variety in my growing power. And I even became a rep for the Tower Gardens!

Growing is so easy, so healthy, so good for you, and it helps create food independence! I love that, and I want to help you have it, too!

Future Growing Plans!

I will keep on growing salad greens and herbs on my HOME (Salad Shooter)!

Once our basement growing room is completed, I plan on planting watermelon, cantaloupe, broccoli, zucchini, and cucumbers to get started on my new FLEX (name TBD)!!!

It will be my first ever time trying to grow a diversified indoor garden year round. Can’t wait for our basement growing room to be complete! I’ll blog about it when we get there! I have plans to grow on my Tower Gardens, plus additionally, I plan on having a root veggie bag garden, and some dwarf blueberry shrubs and lemon trees. I’ll have to phase it all in, and adapt and grow with my own learning and experience … but I am excited! I am excited about being able to grow my own clean, healthy food!

I am excited to be able to grow more energy efficiently, conserving water, and having easy independence!

I am excited to eat these delicious yummy nummies … and right in the convenience, ease, and safe-cleanliness of my own home!

Thank you for being here with me as I grow my food independence and share my yummy nummy snaps with you! I hope you wanted to gobble your screen!

Big Loving and Big Hugging YOU … PINK & GREEEN!!!

A Hint of Fall Color!
On the Bog (with Kat, Bear, & Wogs)

Fall Color. On the Bog. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

A Hint of Fall Color!

A hot summer sun blazed high in the sky, brightening the day and keeping spirits high. On the Bog, Kat, Bear, and Wogs were out for an exploration trek and enjoying the incoming fall breeze keeping them cool as they hiked on. Bear was excited for the wagon ride through the “wild”!

Our adventuring trio found Belle resting on an inviting hammock. She chirped her happiness when they stopped to say, “HI.” and admire the hint of fall color showing on the two, tall red maples hosting the hammock.

Flop, Fluff, and Squeech all played nearby and were enjoying the gentle turn of weather.

Kat (looking up at the clouds, then back to the hammock and thinking it might be nice to rest a while and watch the clouds float by): I think we should try out that hammock when Squeech is done!

Wogs (nodded, smiling at the thought): Definitely! We can explore for a bit more to give Bear a big ride, then come back.

Bear (loving this plan and looking forward to some wagon nap time after adventuring flicker-swished his tail in happiness): Mrow!

Hello Beautiful Sweet Souls!

Our world is becoming ever more challenging. I’m guessing you feel it, too. The anger, angst, frustration, and even fear. It’s been building, bubbling, and boiling.

When times get hard like this, it can get harder to cope and navigate. I know I’m finding it harder. Our usual self-care can fall short. We can feel ourselves melting under the weight of stress of negativity.

Dearest, loveliest, bright blossom, dig your roots deep. Don’t give up, and know you are loved and not alone, and you are needed! Shine your petals wide and bright into the sunlight and take in the warmth and positive energy! Let the goodness wash over you and help preserve you!

This is a time for a deeper dive into what works for us! Connect and share with your like-minded love muffins. Breathe deeply, slowly, measured and paced. Get movement into your body. Nourish and hydrate. Hug yourself. Unplug and disconnect. Rest and rejuvenate. Head outside and be present to just watch the clouds float by.

And when you need a release beyond your efforts to quiet and calm the howling winds outside … go for a run, knead some bread (maybe punch it a little, or maybe even a lot! … lol), faceplant into a pillow deep in the recesses of your closet and scream … but find a positive release that will help you get the stress out, let go, and heal.

I know it’s harder for many of us. Me, too. But harder isn’t impossible. It’s just harder, and we’re worth our effort!

Focus on what works for you! Focus on what empowers you! Focus on what makes you feel happiness in your heart and heals your soul, mind, and body!

One day, one step, one breath at a time … together with love and goodness as our guiding value … let’s watch the clouds float by and feel peace and calm and love in our hearts!

Thank you for sharing this time and being here with me in love and big hugs! Squeezing you tight!

The Power of a Smile!

The power of a smile!

Okay Beautiful Blossoms … let’s not complicate this one. A smile is POWERFUL! It is an instant pick-me-up! Even if you fake it, a smile will do good things to your body!!!

It’s chemical, people! We have Happy Hormones!

You smile; your facial muscles move; your brain gets triggered; feel good chemicals get released; and voila … instant mood lifter!!!!

So what are you waiting for?

Are you smiling right now? Why not? … You could be … !!!

You’ll note the upturned corners of my mouth … my teeth beaming … my cheeks rounded and up … it’s as though my lips are stretching to meet my ears.

You smile, you feel better! Easy peasy!

What’s not to love?

A heartfelt moment to be seriously serious.

I’m actually totally serious above, even if a bit silly. But as a blossom challenged by perimenopausal hormone shifts, fluctuating hormone turbulence, and a state of ever depleting estrogen and progesterone levels, I get these horrible, terrible, life-crashing, grief-striking bouts of sobbing tears accompanied by incomprehensible bereft feelings that clench my stomach and make eyes leak like rivers.

These moments totally suck!!!

So … for my beautiful blossom who suffer depression, anxiety (I have that, too, and I know how bad anxiety bites the biggy, too.), etc, … if you’ve got a regular case of the “sads” or “scaredy cats,” I just want you to know … I’ve tried with every PINK molecule and energy light in my body to smile in these sobbing moments, and I’m usually NOT successful.

In these acute moments, sometimes we have to give ourselves the necessary time to process the moment.

THEN, as soon as we can, we can smile to help continue our upward journey take us upward faster and happier!

And might I also just add … if you are a blossom with clinical depression and/or anxiety, please keep seeing your therapist, doing your therapy in all its many forms, and please keep healing! Smile when you can, cuz it really does help! And know we are here for you in the biggest loving, hugging way possible!!! Holding you on your journey and helping you get to the other side of your challenge!

Know that you are always welcome here! Know that I am hugging you so big! And with so much love!

I really hope my smiles, hugs, and loves, in all their forms can bring joy into your day and life, and help to brighten your spirits!

Quick Highlights Benefits of Smiling

Studies have shown the simple act of smiling is the fastest way to perk you up and brighten your day. Even if you “make yourself” smile … it still releases your brainz happy juices!
Stress reducer
Immune system booster (makes you healthier)
Pain reducer
Lowers your BP
In short … a true kindness to you!!!!
And … it’s a kindness that can be shared for free!!!!

What can you do right now to help you smile?

As you likely know, I’ve got lots of Smile Tools in my tool kit!

I doodle!
I host Create and Share Parties (more on this to come!)!
I chat with friends and loved ones!
I give gratitude for the goodness in my life!
I spend mindful moments just breathing and taking in the nature around me!
I yoga, yoga, yoga, yoga, yoga, and more yoga!
I slurp (yep, I actually slurp as necessary!) on fruit smoothies!
I watch the creatures being all creature-y in Bog-landia behind my Starry Cottage lil home!
I hug my honeybun!
I watch funny/happy/uplifting movies/videos!
I tell jokes!
I write funny stuff!
I read funny stuff!
Uh, I’ll just up and start smiling … just to be smiling!
I silly dance around in my Starry Cottage!
… just to name a few …

I encourage you to make tool kit of smile-inducers! And you can start right now by listing off 3 things you can do to smile! (Like go back up and see me smiling at you! Or check out my awesomely fun “doodle Gogh!”)

Be the smile in your day! Be the smile in someone else’s day, too!

Well, Beautiful Blossoms! I have loved spending this happy, loving time with you and creating these very special “doodle Gogh” arts for you! I hope I have brought fun, silliness, smiles, and love and big hugs into your day today!

You are so very precious!

Thank you for sharing this time with me!

Super Muah!

Overcoming Negativity Pep Talk

Ever notice how loudly negativity talks?

Whether it’s the voice in your head sprinkling, or worse, showering you with toxic thoughts, the voice is loud. It resonates. You hear it. It confirms your fears and fuels your anxieties.

In the world around us, mean people, bullies, hate speech, intolerance … it’s all so loud! Amplified beyond any reasonable value.

We hear about the hateful things someone did, or said. We hear about the angst and discontent. We hear negativity ringing through with volume that can be deafening.

Yet, when we say positive things, give compliments, gush about the goodness, and do good things, it’s acoustic without the amp. It’s like a whisper, barely floating on the sound waves.

Why is that?

Why do we gravitate toward the negativity so easily?

Why do we focus on horrible people with only garbage to spew?

Why do we listen so intently to the toxic thoughts … and with such convinced belief?

Why not honor ourselves and our accomplishments with glorious, resounding, megaphone penetration????

Have you ever said, “I’m my own worst critic?”

If so, perhaps this is the time to stop saying it.

You are so much more than the negativity in your life – in our world. Be the first to stand up for you … overcoming the negativity starts with you!

Be Loud! Be Love!

If we don’t show ourselves self-love and self-respect, why on earth would anyone else do it? We should be the example for how we want to be treated.

We should show others our gentleness, our kindness towards ourselves … we should show them how we treat ourselves and how we treat others. And then this becomes the standard by which we invite others into our lives.

If they can’t treat you as well as you treat yourself, then why would you keep them?

The world seems to have taken a bit of messy spill out there in aisle 4 of the universe.

We hear the anger. We hear the self-serving entitlement. We hear the intolerance. We hear the unsettled, uprising volatility of a world needing/wanting/restlessly jostling to vent.

Anger. Negativity. Argument. Loud and noisy. And unsettling.

Our world is feeling uncertain.

And the truth of it is, most of that is beyond our control. And time spent on things beyond our control is arguably wasted and unhealthy time.

Overcoming negativity can be done! It starts in your heart. In your mind. In your thoughts. In your words. In your actions. In how you treat yourself and others. In how you perceive the world. In how you grow your life.

I invite you to pick up the megaphone to your positivity and be heard!

Don’t let negativity be the voice that guides you. You are bright, beautiful, and loved!

You have goodness to share!

You have goodness to live and be!

You are made of stardust and starlight brightened by your amazing uniqueness! Grow what you feel needs to be grown. And shine with all you’ve got!

The only way to make positivity be heard and be loud is for us to value it, live it, and shine it so bright we drown out the negativity darkness.

Together, you and me … we got this!

I love you so much!!! Thank you for sharing this Positivity Pep Talking time with me!

I hope you feel inspired! Lit up and ready to be loud!

Let’s be LOUD! Let’s be LOVE! Let’s be POSITIVE!

Be the Change

“Be the Change you wish to see in the world!” Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi got it right!

If I’ve learned anything in this life (and I’ve learned lots), it’s that you can’t control others. You can’t make them be anything. For instance, you can’t make someone else be happy. You can’t make someone care. You can’t make someone be anything they don’t want to be.

We are impressionable beings. We are social. We hang out in groups, and we listen. We can be influenced.

We can be change!

We can be goodness! We can be love! We can be light!

Today I have a singular light brightening my brain. This light has been calling to me for months. It’s a light I need to shine brightly and to share, because it’s a light of making a positive difference. It’s a light that shows just how good we can be! It shows the change we can make!

Be a BEST PERSON in peoples lives!

A little while back I learned that a dear friend had passed. She was young. … Cancer. Taken before her time, and a devastating loss to all those who were fortunate to share life with her.

She liked ice cold cokey colas. Just about everything she ate needed “a lil salt” after a first tiny bite. Her laugh was mirthful and hearty. No one could decorate a Christmas tree like her, but pilots could use the lights as a landing beacon. And her heart was pure gold!

She was hard work, determination, grit, and a lickity split brain! She was reliable, authentic, and she liked flying under the radar. Meghan wasn’t looking for other people to make her feel important with ribbons and awards. But she was special; she was perfect (in only a way Meghan could be)!

Meghan was a Best Person in my life! (which is why I’m sharing with you!) :0)

Do you have a Meghan (Best Person) in your life?

I think we all have Meghans in our lives. The people who authentically shine and make us look inward to be our best selves!

I think to all the people who have come into my life. Beautiful souls! Bright lights! Angels on earth! Even spritely little fairies of goodness!

I can strive to always be my best, give my best, and help my best for others!

I feel that even if I only get five seconds in passing, I can smile! I feel deep gratitude for you and this time we share! And I strive to always be a light in your days!

I can be the change for goodness! I can be the change for love! I can be the change for authenticity! I can be the change for happiness and wellness!

I invite you to be a Best Person for others! (Be the change!)

Being a best person (the change) isn’t about being perfect. It’s not about always being something uber, impossibly positive.

A smile.
A hug.
Words of kindness, or love, or support, … or all of these!
Maybe it’s a gift of your time to help them tackle something challenging they are facing.
Maybe it’s just time shared laughing together and having a fun chit chat.

“Be the change …”, as Gandhi has said. I call it Being the Ripple!

You are precious!

You are light! We need you!!!!

Our world is faced with many struggles! And one thing is for sure, Our Love and Light can help!!! (It certainly won’t hurt … so … sweet blossom … Let’s be the change! Let’s be the ripple!)

Love and Big Hugging you big … and I’m smiling at you so bright my cheeks are practically in my ears!!!!

Comedy Night at Froggy Bog!
On the Bog (with Kat, Bear, & Wogs)

Laughter is medicine! On the Bog! Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

Comedy Night at Froggy Bogs!

The darkness of night had fallen On the Bog, lit only by a faint crescent moon tucked behind thick clouds, some gently twinkling stars, and lots of blinking fireflies.

The pleasant summer day had been sunny and warm with a happy, cooling breeze to make their playtime an absolute delight! Kat, Bear, and Wogs were all tuckered out from their big outside adventuring and silliness.

Nestled inside Starry Cottage On the Bog, they all snuggled together on their big, fluffy couch and listened to the froggy boggy sounds outside.

Kat (smiling and wondering): It sounds like they’re laughing!

Wogs (nodding and smiling back): Yeah, must be stand-up night, and their comedian is hilarious!

Bear (thinking the frogs were probably laughing at them for spending such a good night inside and missing out on all the moonlit fun, wagged the end of his tail with eagerness, but then yawned): Mrow.

Laughter can actually reduce pain and encourage healing!

And let’s be real … we could all use some healing right now … if not physically, then mentally and emotionally.

As we dip into yet another wave of pandemic challenge and hear more about the climate crisis, and …, and …, and …, … … … whatever the world is throwing our way, it can be hard to stay positive. Upbeat. Lighthearted. … Or even, just to be okay and hanging in there.

Our morale can drop, and with it, it can take our overall well-being (including physical). So it’s important for us to find ways to laugh and lighten up … to be bright and smile!

It’s important for us to connect with our loving, happy peeps! It’s important for us to be seen and heard. And it’s important for us to feel loved, smile big, and laugh hard!

So hug yourself or the creature sitting next to you (human or furry), and tell yourself this goodness: I am LOVED! I am NEEDED! I am a BRIGHT, BEAUTIFUL LIGHT IN THIS WORLD!

Smile and laugh! Share your smiles and laughter with others! (Did you know that even if you have to force a smile or laugh, it still helps??? … It’s true!)

So in these times when it can be easy to see darkness, I offer to you the gentle, loving, hugging reminder to Focus On What You Can Do To Help Your Body Cope And Heal!

And right now, you can smile and laugh! And know I love you!!!

Art as Self-Care:
Lights Digi-Painting

Art as Self-Care. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

Art as Self-Care: Lights Digi-Painting

About a week ago, I had a really scary experience. A something that triggered my anxiety/panic-button in this COVID pandemic time. Irresponsible, disrespectful, self-righteous behaviors of others that put my improving-but-still-fragile health at risk. I never saw the danger coming. I was in a supposedly trustworthy medical environment for a very necessary yearly appointment. Yet, there I was, surrounded by unsafety.

The day it happened, I almost held up throughout. My therapy techniques held me until the night … which is when I’m most vulnerable (cuz like, I’m tired, ya know?).

Well, so, I made it through the day; then, I cried that night. The fear caught up with me. I woke up the next day almost numb. Or rather, I simply felt so depleted I was barely there. I retreated into myself to try to cope and to allow the post-experience healing process to continue. I was quiet. I felt a dark, cloudy bubble surrounding me.

It wasn’t fun.

I didn’t feel well. I felt low and vulnerable.

I didn’t want to talk with friends. I just wanted to be very, very, very quiet.

But, slowly, throughout the week, I gained ground. Bit by bit.

A few days “post-event,” I found myself sitting in front of my computer, staring at my project planner. I knew I needed to do something to get out of my shell. But as I stared at my screen, I didn’t engage.

I wasn’t ready “to work” (like blogging or story writing).

I needed something less structured. With no expectations beyond creating a healing experience for myself.

I scrolled the pages of my digi-planner until a little gem caught my eye.

I have a variety of projects: small, medium, and big, with different purposes, involving different skills sets and interests. This variety helps me stay active for almost any energy/ability/mental level. And when I run into “down” time that requires some extra self-loving and self-caring … I’ve made sure I have lots of choices to pick from.

The Little Gem That Caught My Eye

In any given moment, I create to let my heart and mind express whatever they need to express. I don’t force myself to create anything. I just let my energy flow. Sometimes I doodle. Sometimes I I write. Sometimes I digi-paint using snaps of nature as canvases. Sometimes I use an inspiration snap to guide me wherever I need to go.

That’s what happened here.

Original snap found somewhere in the interwebs universe.

Inspiration and Healing

When I saw this little image I came across somewhere in the interwebbin werld, I felt it again … the peaceful joy this image induces in me. I’m not sure why it makes me feel so calm and happy. It’s just a blurry snap of a city street and crosswalk somewhere in the world at night with lights. But I suspect it’s the colors and the lights and how the pinks pop out against the darkened teals and blues. The lights and colors remind me of Christmas lights, and Christmas lights have been one of my favorite things on earth since I was old enough to crawl under the Christmas tree and fall asleep.

So with a bit of peacful joy guiding my heart, I kept studying the snap (the colors and the feel) and digi-painted, starting with a blank white canvas and some digital watercolors. I didn’t do anything fancy. I simply “moused” color onto my digital canvas, seeking the experience of color. Of quiet. Of peaceful time to savor and feel safe in.

In case you are interested, anyone with a computer + mouse or touchscreen + pen can do what I did here (and beyond those already purchased items, you can do it for free). I used the FREE Adobe Fresco App and my mouse for the entire painting. Adobe provides an quick start-up tutorial that will have you painting in about 5 easy minutes … SERIOUSLY!

My one creative splurge for my final outcome was to add a PhotoShop Elements “Paint Daubs” filter to my image to help my lights pop a lil bit more.

You can either paint something in your heart/mind’s eye, or you can find a snap/IRL-setting of something that inspires you … and start painting!

While painting, I used a coupla different watercolor brushes (Watercolor Wash Soft + Basic Watercolor).

My goal wasn’t to recreate the image. I just wanted the colors and feeling the snap gave me to guide my color choices and placement in a manner consistent with giving my painting the happy visual punch of lights against darkness in a way that makes me feel happy.

I’d just been through an experience that darkened my days, and I know that the way back to healing is to focus on the light – and I love Pink light, especially.

This painting took me about 2 hours to complete – it was a relatively quick painting (many of my creations take much longer).

In my 2 hours, I came away from my digital canvas smiling and feeling brighter than I had the whole week. I was excited to share my creation with close friends and my honeybun (which got me outta my troubled and introvert shell).

My creation time was self-caring time that allowed me to focus on something different than the fear, the scary moment in time. My anxiety quieted. My mind calmed down and found peace. This self-caring time allowed me to rest and heal in a positive and supportive manner. It was soul-soothing delicious time well spent! It gave me strong steps to letting go and moving forward!!!

So … lemme show you what I created! As I am quite excited!!!

The first image is of my original watercolor painting, and the second one has the “splashy/flashy” filter added for a popping-of-the-lights effect.

I love both!

So now that I shared my experience, let’s talk about the health benefits of art-ing, painting, writing, crafting, … creating.

Creating is focused, mindful, and calming (it actually produces dopamine, an antidepressant). Art as self-care checks off a lot of boxes. It helps you de-stress. Add to all of these just stated, creating will help you feel happy and smile. It can get you connecting with loved ones again. It can help break through the dark haze holding you down.

And the good news is, evening creating (say, for instance, coloring) for 5 minutes a day can make a difference in your daily life … it’s excellent daily self-care!

Creating art can help improve symptoms of depression, anxiety, PTSD, stress, and more.
You can use art therapy to process trauma and mental challenges.
Creating art helps build connections in the brain, helping to prevent memory loss. (https://www.riteaid.com/articles/the-arts-and-healthy-aging-how-does-art-affect-the-brain)
When you color or create, you help the part of your brain that makes you afraid/feel fear relax. It is a form of mindful quietness that is Self-Care AWESOMEness!
Even just 5 minutes a day can help!

Art as self-care, my beautiful blossoms and bright stars, is a happy, healthy, fun, healing way to process life’s challenges!

Love yourself with some create time!

paint
write
color
doodle
draw
crochet
knit
quilt
write a short story
journal
make a collage of snaps you collect from online or IRL
mold and shape clay
paint ceramics
build fused glass gloriousness!
create tile mosaics
… uh, this list goes on and on!

Whatever you do, enjoy it! Let it free your mind. Give yourself a much needed rest and break! Let your tensions chill da hellz out for a while! (lol). Heal. Find peace and calm. Be well again, my amazing sweet pea!

You are worthy of this time and your art-ing to self-care!

Thank you so much for sharing this growing, healing time with me!

Take a deep breath in, and know you are loved! Cuz, I loves you SO BIG!!!

Eat something nourishing today! And know I am hugging you GIGANTIC!

A Scary Time!
On the Bog (with Kat, Bear, & Wogs)

scary time. positive relationships. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

A Scary Time!

It was a scary time On the Bog! Lightening struck, and thunder shook the very walls of Starry Cottage!

Dark skies roiled. Heavy rain blew and blustered, drenching everything in sight and obscuring the usually chipper sights of the Bog. All the creatures were silent and still, hiding in their homes and shelters, hoping for the storm to pass quickly.

Inside Starry Cottage with a candle lit in the window for hope and light, Kat, Bear, and Wogs huddled closely together, holding each other tight.

Kat (shuddering in response to a loud, nearby lightening strike): I’m scared.

Wogs (hugging Kat tighter and gently stroking Bear’s head for comfort): Me, too. But it’s scary outside, so that’s normal.

Kat (cuddling in closer to Wogs and petting Bear with calming love): I’m so grateful we have each other!

Wogs (loving Kat and Bear big time with gentle comforting hugs): Me, too!

Bear (loving Kat and Wogs so big and thankful for their comfort in such a scary time, snuggled deeply into Wogs lap and felt calm with Kat’s gentle touch): <3

Live an Inspired Life! Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs!

It would be great if scary times didn’t happen, but they do. They can throw us off-center and disturb our calm. They can bring tremendous upset and upheaval. We can struggle to navigate these difficult times.

But navigate we must. One step at a time. One foot in front of the other. One breath at a time.

They help us be a little braver, be a bit calmer, and help us find the strength we need to get through the scary time with less soul scorching … less fear … an in a way that helps us feel not alone, … and simply better.

Nourishing positive relationships with others, growing love with friends and partners, and investing in meaningful connections all take time to flourish, but these bonds are gifts in our lives! They brighten our days! We have goodness to share! Support to lend! Hugs to hold us!

Together, we celebrate the good times, and comfort each other in the scary and difficult times!

Together, we make life happier, healthier, PINKer, kinder, more loving, more caring, … simply filled with more goodness!

I am filled with gratitude for this shared time with you! Thank you for being here with me as we navigate the good days and the bad days! Thank you for sharing your brightness with the world!

May any scary times you face pass quickly and without lasting debilitating impact. May you have the love and support you need to hold you, comfort you, and guide you safely back to brighter days! May you always feel my love holding your heart!

Living an Inspired Life
Making It Happen!

Living a Happy Life. Mary Kate Kopec. Love and Big Hugs.

Living Your Inspired Life: Making It Happen!

Living an Inspired Life: Welcome! Let’s Get You Started! (Introduction all about who, why, what, when, where, and how for Living an Inspired Life and the steps to get you started envisioning yours!)

Living an Inspired Life: Time to Reflect and Imagine! (In this post, we take all the doodle-thinking pages you created in the first post, and we dig in with with reflection and imagination to see what your Inspired Life looks like!)

Okay, Beautiful Blossoms!

Let’s get you living your inspired life! Let’s make it happen!

You’re gonna want to have all your original doodle-thinking pages from our first meeting, and all of your notes and vision/dream boarding from our second meeting …

Make a List!

What is different between the “current you” and the “living your inspired life you”?

What new things do you need to grow into your life?
What old things no longer serve you and must be let go of?

Make a list! It doesn’t have to be a big list. It doesn’t have to be organized in any form (not quite yet). You just need to get all down in front of you, so you can see what you want to grow and let go of as you live your inspired life!

For me, my list is based on my values of happiness, healthiness, wellness, gratitude, kindness, love, and positude (If you’ve been reading my posts and enjoying my positudes and watching my videos, this sounds like me, right, … big hearts and big smiles to you!).

For me, I want to live a happy life. A healthy life. A life of light, love, gratitude, and goodness. I want to be light and love in this world and to help spread smiles and big hugs!

Have a beautiful, happy, supportive, loving, wonderful life with my honeybun
Create happiness, light, love, joy, positivity
Live in gratitude & wellness
Grow and nurture beautiful relationships
For my body, mind, soul, efforts, and energies, nurture, nourish, live, learn, and grow with sustainability, conservation, goodness, wellness, healthiness
Movement in my life through yoga, walking, bouncing, and outdoor adventures
Be authentic and genuine and my best possible self
See and experience the beauty of nature
Live and die painlessly
Have a positive, kind, loving impact on all those I encounter … and if possible improve the earth’s wellness through my actions and helping others in need, like seniors, homeless, and abused and neglected animals

When you make your list, let your values guide you! This is your inspired life, and only you can know what you want and need! This is personal! This is all about you and for you! So be brave! Be honest with yourself! And give yourself your best, … because you deserve your best!

You + You Living Your List = You Living Your Inspired Life!

Once you have your list, you have your ideals, growth goals, letting-go goals, … you have the foundation you need to get started living your inspired life!

Some of your list items might be easy to simply start living. Others may require planning and effort. Some of your list items are comprised of many smaller growth steps (my list is like this, as I wrote mine in overarching ideals).

So before we go any further, let’s help you create a “Living an Inspired Life Action Plan”!

You have a list – let’s organize it into a path of sorts! Mind you, this isn’t a permanent path, or inflexible path. Your life is always changing. You are always changing. You are always growing. This path is simply meant to be a vision of growing-you-forward progress in an form that feels ideal to you right now.

As you look at your list:

Is it a path of individual steps growing one forward into the next?
Is it a path of multiple steps happening at once?
Is it a combination of multiple steps and single steps?
Is there a visible logic in forward progression … to do this next ideal, you must first accomplish this ideal?
Are there “easy” and “quick” steps/ideals you can start living immediately or grow pretty quickly? (This can give empower you with an immediate boost of growth that can make you feel really good about your new path.)

Doodle-think out what your path looks and feels like? Where would you like to start? Do you need to accomplish one thing before you can do another?

Ways to Live Your Inspired Life … Envisioning, Creating, and Living Your Do-able Path!

Know that how you grow – what you tackle first, second, and next for always – is up to you what feels good and right for you … when you are ready!

I encourage you to grab your dream/vision board and have it for constant reflection and reminder as you think about your path and laying out your steps. Let your Inspired Vision guide you as you lay out your path! One step, multi-steps, or a combination as you go and grow … you live your do-able Inspired Life!

Know you (and learn you as you go):

What helps you?
What will empower you?
What do you need to grow forward?
What obstacles do you foresee, and how can you face them and overcome them?
What support do you need?

Allow yourself to grow and adapt!
Allow yourself to let go of ideals that no longer serve you!
Allow yourself to amend ideals to better meet your ever growing self!
Allow yourself to immerse yourself in the joy of living and growing in your Inspired Life Vision!

Then you can use the smaller do-able sized steps to grow your success into achieving your ideal and goal.

Here’s one of my rather large list ideals:

For my body, mind, soul, efforts, and energies, nurture, nourish, live, learn, and grow with sustainability, conservation, goodness, wellness, healthiness

I’ve broken this down into MANY, MANY, MANY smaller do-able steps. And even some of those steps have been broken down into smaller do-able steps.

For instance, the part about nourishing my healthiness, I needed to start living an anti-inflammatory life. This includes ALL KINDS OF THINGS (growths and letting go’s):

reducing stress
getting movement into my body
cutting out added sugars
cutting out gluten
getting regular, restful, rejuvenating sleep
and lots more

So let’s take a look at the cutting out gluten … I’ll blog about this someday … as it’s been quite the growth adventure … but it started with doing the obvious: stop eating wheat.

Then I had to learn more about where gluten is … it’s not just in wheat, it also in rye, for instance. And it’s hidden in so many unsuspecting places … like any food packaged in a facility that processes wheat. It turned into a spiral of “ohmigosh, wheat is everywhere!!!”

So … baby steps. I didn’t suddenly cut out gluten, and it was completely gone. It’s taken learning, growing, adapting. Finding new ways to eat. Find new recipes.

I once was a person who could justify eating cake with a glass of milk for breakfast … lol. And now, cake? Cookies? Yes, but differently. And I’ve grown into them, and I love them. But had I tried to do it all in the beginning, I would have been overwhelmed. And I would’ve hated the food.

Slow and steady. Growing. Living it!

Empower your new Inspired Life with happy accomplishments and growth!

Feel good about you and what you are living and growing into your life!

Mind you … you may not be ready in this moment to do “it” … you may need to baby step it with those smaller do-able sized steps. So you’ll have to differentiate between “willing to” and “ready to.” If you’re not willing to do it … don’t bother putting it into your path. But if you’re willing, just not ready … well, then, sweet beautiful blossom … all you have to do is figure out the smaller do-able step path to empower your successful achievement of the growth you want to live!

Living an Inspired Life is NOT a Destination … It’s Now!

If I may …

We have been programmed in life to set goals and achieve them. And that until we achieve them, the goal isn’t complete.

The problem with this thinking is that life is ongoing … it’s not a Do-It Done sort of thing. Well, sure. In the long run, one could look at it in restrospect and reflection like that.

But while we’re living it … we’re hopefully going to be here for a while … so thinking that you can’t live your inspired life until you get all your steps done is not the right kind of thinking. In that, it’s not empowering or helpful or guiding or loving or kind … or patient to think that way.

Your Life Is Happening NOW!

You are living it, breathing it, being it … right now!

Your inspired life is yours to have and create! To live and grow! To rejoice in and be free to be your bright, beautiful self!!!

I think of that quote from Allen Saunders: Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans.

So …

Your List

Your Ideals

Your Path of Do-Able Steps of Growing-You’s and Letting-Go’s

It’s flexible … it grows with you, changes with you. It’s a vision of how you can activate your Inspired Life … how you can start living it.

But don’t get mired down in waiting for it to happen.

Once you begin … You ARE Living Your Inspired Life … how many ever steps at a time that work for you!

Jim Rohn has famously stated, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

If you want to empower your success, you will generally do better when the folks around you support you instead of challenging your every ideal.

Personal Share: MK’s Empowering Her Success

In cutting gluten out of my life, I have not been joined by my friends or my family. For them, it’s not something they want or need.

However, my honeybun has been all about my success! Even though, it’s not something he is seeking to do, he supports my wellness, my healthiness, and my efforts to live my inspired life.

So, he helps me watch for gluten in foods. He helps me cook/bake gluten-free foods. And when I eat gluten-free foods he enjoys, he’ll eat them, too. And when I don’t, he simply makes something different for himself, or I do. We work it as a supportive team!

My point is … your peeps … your blossoms … they don’t have to be on the same exact page as you (it can help if they are, but who really is ever on the “same exact page” [we’re all so very different]).

Your peeps don’t have to be on the same ideal page … but empowerment is improved when they are on the “supporting your success” page!

I hope all of this insight and experience helps you envision, create, and live your Inspired Life!

This is the insight and experience I use to help me and my coachees envision, create, and live our Inspired Lives!

Thank you so much for sharing this Living an Inspired Life blog mini-series time with me! Thank you so much for this opportunity to help you feel love, light, and big hugs in your life!

I am loving you with all the PINK in my heart and hugging you so big!!!

PS: If you have any questions or comments about Living Your Inspired Life, feel free to reach out to me!

PPS: If you feel this blog mini-series can help others you know, please feel free to share this post with them (all the blog post links for this series are provided in the opening paragraph for ease and convenient access.)