on the topic of well-being
the two of us trying to stay cool in the sparkling river, taken on 35mm film
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This morning, I deadheaded a few of the potted plants, leaving behind me little piles of dried flowers as I moved from pot to pot. And just above, there’s a helicopter making its way to the hospital half-a-mile or so west of where we live.
About 20-minutes later, I’m sitting on the front porch in a sweatshirt, enjoying the coolness in the air and the slanted rays of the sun before it stations directly overhead. I have my water with me and my phone, which I was using to text my mom and my husband (who is away for a couple days), a few test results that came in early this morning.
It’s easy to get caught up in the why’s and the how’s of it all. From easing into your day (trimming the plants, drinking some water, walking your dog) to obsessing over a few flagged numbers on a glaring screen with an alarm goes off in your head, telling you that you should…I don’t know, panic? Overthink? Spiral? Tell yourself you aren’t enough? Try harder? Do Less? Be better? Drink less coffee? Drink more coffee?
Today, I’d like to discuss the topic of our well-being (like how we feel when answering well-meaning questions like, “really though, how are you doing?”) and other expectations that are so often tied to the ‘status’ of our mental and physical state-of-being (whether we like it or not), tugging and shoving and encouraging us to try this, no this, and now this, but just be sure you’re intentional about it otherwise it might not work.
I do not, however, wish to add to the noise of trying to figure out what you should or shouldn’t be doing, especially when we consider the uniquely individual experience that is: caring for ourselves and those we love, and how so much of what is made accessible to us is dependent on the availability within our community, state, or country.
So, while I will not be directly discussing how something so universal (ex: health-care), could become so inaccessible to so many, I would like us to consider a more micro view: what ‘being-well’ means to the individual, how we might choose to answer a simple, “how are you?,” and the ways in which this might impact how we relate to ourselves and those around us.
With that in mind, no solutions or fix-alls will be offered. Only my own personal stories and examples, shared with the hope that you may feel (even a tiny bit) more supported and seen in your own (or if nothing else, something to listen to while you wash the dishes).
Bye for now,
Chloe