Focus

Yesterday a friend of mine sent me this video. Watch it start to finish. It’ll blow your mind a little bit!

Lately, Husband and I have been having a lot of conversations about living in the moment–about monotasking and focus. We both have jobs where we spend the majority of our day in front of screens and often we find ourselves checking our twitter feeds regardless of our surroundings or company. There are so many devices trying to talk to us at any given point that it’s often hard to focus on the task at hand. Confucius quote So when I watched this performance, two things struck me. First of all, the intense concentration that Miyoko Shida has on what she is doing. How often do you perform one task, quietly (a state that is really hard for me in general) giving your complete attention to what you’re doing? Since Husband and I started talking about monotasking, I’ve found an everyday chore like washing the dishes can become something like a meditative exercise when done in silence–no dings coming from my phone and no Big Bang Theory blaring from the TV in the other room. It really clears my mind. Anne Morrow Lindbergh The other thing I’ve found is that it is easier to be creative when my mind is free of distractions. We all go through times of creative block, regardless of whether you have a creative job like I do or not. But, I’ve found that when my mind is free of the noise from Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter, it’s easier to come up with brand new ideas and work through creative problems. This brings me to the second thing I found so fascinating about Miyoko Shida’s performance: her willingness to create something impermanent. Often times, I think we hang on to routines and processes regardless of whether or not they work. Getting out of the box and having a willingness to change or even destroy the tangible things or the ideas I’ve created in the past has given me a new sense of freedom in my work and in our home. Steve Jobs quote Be quiet. Remove distractions. Focus on the task at hand.

Sweet Spring Days

anne-of-avonlea-quote

I like to say that Secrets of a Belle is where I share about “the art of living a more beautiful life.” And while my voice here in Blogland has been a bit quieter for the last couple weeks, life is pretty beautiful at the moment. It’s that perfect time of year in East Tennessee when the weather is just right for bike rides, tennis in the park, and *lots* of picnics. We’ve been experimenting in the kitchen with what comes each Wednesday in our CSA basket, reading several new books, and doing lots around the house. I couldn’t help but think of this quote…

“After all,” Anne had said to Marilla once, “I believe the nicest and sweetest days are not those on which anything very splendid or wonderful or exciting happens but just those that bring simple little pleasures, following one another softly, like pearls slipping off a string.”
-L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Avonlea

Tell me, what’s your favorite simple pleasure of late?

My Love Affair with Ella

It was on this day, in 1917, that the First Lady of Song graced the earth with her presence, and so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to tell you 2 stories about how Ella Fitzgerald has made my life more beautiful.

It starts in the mid-1990s when my parents and I moved to East Tennessee and the next couple years proved to be those weird, awkward ones between elementary kid-dom and the unmistakable hormonal rage all middle-school girls possess. On top of that, I was a pretty quiet (to those who didn’t know me), sheltered kid who spent a lot of time reading and not so much time listening to the Backstreet Boys. I had several friends in the neighborhood I liked to play with, but I really loved just hanging out with my parents. And I was pretty sure (as I still am) that I was born in the wrong era.

So one summer, while vacationing in Ocean Isle, my parents got me this cd that changed the entire course of my life forever; it was a compilation of the best of Ella Fitzgerald. Suddenly, I’d found a music that was mine. I carried my disc man everywhere listening to the songs play over and over until I could recite all the words to “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” and every bit of skatting in It Don’t Mean a Thing. I listened to that cd when I was happy, when I was sad, when I was moody–anytime I didn’t know what I wanted to listen to, I put on Ella.

There’s something about her voice that I can feel in my bones, do you have any musicians like that?

Fast forward, almost 9 years. I was finishing up my junior in high school, still pretty awkward, still listening to music none of my friends knew, when a *handsome* curly-headed boy that had started coming to our church and playing piano with me in our worship band. People had been trying to set us up for months and, both being quite stubborn, we’d respectfully declined and instead opted to pester one another in what was, I’m sure, a very annoying display for everyone around us.

Finally, one night after church, when the parents were out of town so there was no one to ask us questions, we decided to go out to dinner. The evening went off without a hitch: no dead air, not too many awkward pauses. Finally, on the ride home, the conversation turned to music.

“What music do you listen to?”

“Probably nothing you’ve ever heard of.”

“I know a lot of music. Tell me, what is it?”

“Don’t worry about it. You wouldn’t know any of it.”

“Seriously, you’re being ridiculous. What’s in your cd player right now?”

“Ella Fitzgerald.”

{pause}

“…Really?”

“Yep. Do you know who that is?”

“I named my dog after her.”

I am happy to report that next Saturday will make 10 years since that night, we have an adorable pup namaed after another jazz great (Dexter Gordon), and we still dance in the kitchen to Ella on a regular basis. So on this, her birthday, I gift you with this little mix I made of some of my favorites from the Queen of Jazz in hopes that they brighten your iPod and your week…

Click here to listen on Spotify.

Are there any musicians that you connect to like this? Anyone I should add to my playlist this week?

Stay in Touch

Let me preface this with: I promise not to be a Debbie Downer despite this doozy of a first sentence…

Since my aunt passed in January, I’ve been trying to seriously evaluate some things. Said things have run the gamut–from appreciating my wonderful husband to enjoying more time outdoors. But perhaps one of the most influential things has been making a concerted effort to stay in touch with people I genuinely like.

You’ll meet thousands of people over the course of your existence. The question is: will they be better because they met you? In a world of Twitter, Facebook, fast food and online-shopping, it is a piece of cake to be anonymous. We can leave work, ‘Like’ our ‘friends’ (read: acquaintances) statuses via a mobile device, and pick-up food at a drive-thru window made by people we’ve never actually met. So empty.

With that in mind, I’ve challenged myself to put more value on the people around me. Can I brighten a cashier’s day? Drop a friend a note just to say ‘hello’ when they pop into my head? What about spending a night out with friends celebrating a boring Thursday?

Let me tell you, it’s quickly changing my life for the better! In the past couple of months, Twitter friends have turned into fabulous pen pals, I’ve reconnected with people I haven’t talked to in years, and I’ve found myself talking about how crazy life is with the girl at the spa and the cashier at Target. We’ve been spending more time out to dinner and traveling to see our best friends. An added bonus? I find that as I concentrate more on the people I really like, the people that drive me crazy just aren’t as important anymore–& this is coming from the cynic who loves to nitpick.

So I hope that this little lesson that I’ve learned can perhaps serve as a challenge to you. Go like people! Care about them. Genuinely take interest in their lives. It’ll rock your world for the better. I promise!

A Month…

It’s been a month since I’ve been in Blogland, and I will be the first to admit postings were pretty sparse for quite a while before that. Why you ask? Well, let’s just say things have been abnormally busy around here for the past couple of months. But rather than give you all the details in one post, I’ll just share a few of the highlights from the last couple of weeks.

I had a new headshot done for work to go with a project that I am super excited to start sharing with you in the next few weeks. Stay tuned on Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram for more on that!

I am completely in *love* with my new Kate Spade iPhone case. I always gravitate towards bright yellow so it’s basically the perfect accessory for every outfit.

I threw in the gratuitous shot of Husband doing yard work to tell you 2 things:
1.) I am hopeful Spring is on the way despite the fact that it was snowing big flakes all morning.
2.) It’s been nearly 10 years & Husband really does just keep getting hotter. I have got to go to the gym.

I recently finished Bubbly on Your Budget, which was a such a fun read! It was first published in 1937 and is all about living a luxurious life within your means.

I have recently discovered that IBC root beer is my favorite after work treat, especially when served in a frozen mug!

I don’t know when I have ever been quite so excited to acquire an original work of art as I was on Monday when we adopted this little man from Emily Winfield Martin’s shop. Isn’t he perfect? I mean: a bow tie? a bee? adorable rosy cheeks? What more can you ask for? If you’re interested in finding your own little treasure, I highly recommend visiting Emily’s shop.