I’ve been thinking a lot lately about hygge. Hygge, in case you don’t know, is the Danish art of coziness. My friend Penny Watson turned me on to the idea. Hygge (pronounced Hoo-ga) is all about creating an atmosphere that brings joy and warmth to your life inside and out no matter what you are doing. For example, wrapping yourself in your favorite cardigan sweater and lighting a scented candle while you work. Or, conversely, writing on your sunporch with the breezes flowing on a warm summer’s day.
As I wrote those examples, it dawned on me that the Danes may have named the concept, but writers have been embracing hygge for years. LOL.
Anyway, lately, I’ve been thinking about mental hygge. That is, feeling warm and joyful inside. Because let’s face it, the world doesn’t always feel like a joyful place lately. The last few weeks have found me increasingly cranky regardless of whether I’m wrapped in a sweater or sipping an iced cold margarita. Then again, anyone who follows me on Facebook or this blog, knows that I’m forever trying to create a positive mental atmosphere for myself. I’m the original broken record when it comes to those subjects.
But back to mental hygge. I’m trying to think of what I can do to calm my cranky thoughts – beyond meditation, which I admit, does help. A while back Penny wrote a post about how she stripped down her life to the five or six basic tenants that she felt she needed to bring herself joy. I’m not sure I’m going to go as hard core as that. For one, Penny returned to working in her garden, and I hate gardening.
I am, however, going to be working on ways to cut back on the ever increasing noise that seems to be surrounding me, and on bringing in more sources of joy. I’m afraid you’ll all have to indulge as I talk about my journey here.
By the way, if you have suggestions on how one can turn off mental noise, please share.
In the meantime, keep writing and reading!