A Slow Dance Through January
and a little poetic reflection
Well, here we are, and January is just about over. Getting things accomplished this month has been slow.
Do you feel like I do?
Eager to get going in 2023; the first week was great. I started with resolutions in mind forging ahead with a kind of “Quickstep,” a joyful, dance-like, and airy feeling. Then suddenly, I hit slow-mo. It seemed like I was moving, as they say, like “Molasses in January.”
I was plodding through the necessary change-overs and catching up on stuff we all seem to have to straighten out every January, like setting up new file folders to fill with this year’s creative pursuits. Organize, de-clutter, and generally spruce up my space. Spur-of-the-moment idea notes that have been jotted down need re-visiting; we don’t want to miss some brainwave😊.
The need to hurry and get things done, yes, that is how I felt.
Yet like some conductor’s baton that signals a hush in the orchestra, grey January days started taking a toll and brought on an unwanted tired feeling. Talking to friends and hearing from others, it seems like I am not the only one.
Pressing on, despite that, I’ve gotten some things newly organized. I started learning some new software, so one New Year’s resolution is accomplished during this quieter time of the year. I also looked over the writing projects I started in 2022. Most are in varying degrees of completion. I have finished stories for a couple of children’s books waiting for me to finish the illustrations. There is also a long list of new ideas, like various recipe ingredients, awaiting some skilled hands to assemble them.
I should have gotten more done, I thought. Oh well, somehow, the best of these stories will make their way onto published pages, I hope, before summer. Writing and illustrating children’s books just take —well, -the time they take.
Yes, I’ve heard of all the AI options, but there is a joy in taking brushes and pallets in hand, even on a computer, and slowly bringing what you see in your mind’s eye onto the page.
Most of the problem was that my computer received a few New Year’s updates and is having trouble accommodating them. Perhaps I need a new one, but this computer is like an old friend with whom I don’t wish to part. What will happen if I have to go to Windows 11? New relationships always take time to foster.
Is there an upside?
Perhaps the upside in this slow-mo I’ve been feeling is helping me take a pause. Re-fuel and recharge the batteries. There may not be time to “smell the roses” this January since none are blooming here, but a few brisk walks in the snow will clear anyone’s head.
One evening I ventured out into the chill air. A ray of the pale buttery sun cast warm sparkling highlights Through some tree branches on someone’s nearby snow-covered roof. The sparkling light only lingered for a few seconds, But it gave me such a feeling of awe and gratitude For chancing on beautiful moments like this.
In the scene, The snow on the roof Nor the icy tree branches Acknowledged any happening slowness. They just accepted the short burst of sunshine, Deciding to land upon them, An instantaneous flash of sun-lit beauty, At once there ...and then gone.
Perhaps we should be thankful for this slower time, In which pausing gives rise to reflection. Time to notice fleeting beauty As if it were a message From some ethereal presence.
Perhaps some new memory To cherish As we dance through time. Slow —quick, quick, slow, As we glide across the dancefloor of our lives.
Let’s enjoy the slow beat a little before January takes a “Quickstep” into February and is gone in a blink!
About the Quickstep in Dance.
“The dancer who masters the fundamentals of the Quickstep will have command of a dance that can never grow stale, a dance that is unquestionably the most attractive expression of rhythm the world has ever known.” wikidancesport.com
Thank you for taking the time to read my newsletters. I hope you find something interesting in each one. Please share this newsletter with your friends if you feel so inclined. New readers are always most welcome.
Blessings to you today,
Trina Astor-Stewart
Author & Illustrator
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