One in every of my favourite e-book bloggers / podcasters, Trendy Mrs. Darcy, hosts an annual dialog in February: What’s saving your life proper now?
February is usually a tough month. Relying the place on the planet you might be, it may be darkish, dreary, chilly, icy, dry, depressing. So, she encourages her readers to suppose past the gloom and give attention to what’s maintaining you afloat.
Here’s what’s saving my life proper now, in February 2026. And I’d like to know from you: What’s saving YOUR life proper now?
Soup
It appears so small, doesn’t it? A cup of sizzling soup with a slice of heat sourdough slathered in butter isn’t life altering, is it? Really, I believe it is perhaps.
As I write this, a pot of spaghetti squash soup (that nobody in my household will eat as a result of nobody likes squash besides me) simmers on the range. Over the weekend, we had a roasted crimson pepper soup with melty grilled cheeses. Soup warms you up on these chilly, darkish days. If I’ve time to make it from scratch, my home fills with scrumptious smells. I merely love soup and will wax on, however you get the purpose. You possibly can virtually name me a meals blogger. You shouldn’t. However you may.
Libby
I hate driving within the snow and ice. And at nighttime. Which principally means I hate driving all winter lengthy. I used to keep away from studying on a pill as a result of I actually needed distance from screens after working hours. Nonetheless, I’ve seen the sunshine. I’m a convert. I like my pill, and I like studying on my pill due to Libby, the library app. I can end a e-book and immediately take a look at the subsequent one. It delivers strategies primarily based on what you want, and it even contains each journal underneath the solar. Libby is saving my life as a result of I don’t must drive to the library and I by no means have a spot in my studying!
Present reads: Aristotle and Dante Uncover the Secrets and techniques of the Universe (on audio as a result of it’s learn by Lin Manuel-Miranda), the Purple Rising trilogy on the advice of my favourite teen librarian, and Canine Enrichment for the Actual World. Oh, and I simply purchased in hardback One Day, Everybody Will Have At all times Been Towards This so I can take notes and dig deeper as I learn.
My buddy, Jodi
A few of you in all probability know her or have adopted pet-friendly DIY’s on her implausible weblog. What you won’t know is that she has been my writing accomplice and accountability buddy since… I can’t even bear in mind when. Many, a few years. She retains me transferring ahead. She retains me sane. We share concepts and laughs and tears, and I’m actually unsure I’d have written something these previous 5 years of “unprecedented instances” with out my weekly date with my buddy, Jodi. In the event you haven’t had the pleasure of assembly her but, go comply with her over on Instagram. Bunnies and birds are ready to welcome you!
My “journal ecosystem”
I do know, I do know. All of us have an excessive amount of occurring. We do. Our lives are stretched so skinny. And whereas I’m somebody who actively advocates for much less to do, fewer actions, extra clean house… actuality units in. Between work and college schedules, there are such a lot of issues to juggle. There’s the cyclical stuff: vet visits, dentist appointments, eye exams, physicals, oil adjustments, canine coaching courses, swim classes, karate, and so forth. After which there’s the additional stuff that comes with youngsters with disabilities: developmental pediatrician, OT, PT, eye specialists, neurology, audiology, peds ortho, and so on. Plus, in fact, the surprising: the Covid analysis adopted by the flu, a chilly right here and there, a number of snow days, a vomiting cat, a limping pet, a flat tire, and so forth. And I want to purchase mild bulbs and cat meals and order the canines’ flea and tick meds, scoop the litter packing containers, decide up prescriptions, stroll the canines, return a cellphone name, wash the dishes and the laundry. Are the women’ library books overdue? When did I final clip Penny’s nails?
I’m not particular on this. All of us have an excessive amount of on our plates, I do know. But when I didn’t have my planner, I’d not get anyplace ever. Nothing would get executed. It’s my mind on paper.
I take advantage of the Hobonichi Cousin, which is ridiculously costly, nevertheless it accommodates month-to-month, weekly, and every day pages for the complete yr, plus locations to trace all the things and clean pages to retailer data, medical doctors’ cellphone numbers, college information, and so forth. Is it extreme? Not for me! I’d die with out it!
Then I additionally maintain actually detailed every day notes in this spiral pocket book that I’ll maintain shopping for time and again. I maintain notes on appointments, what I’m studying, what I’m considering, how I’m feeling, what I want to recollect to do in some unspecified time in the future, and so forth.
My journal and my planner save my life each single day.
Cat Cuddles
I am keen on my canines. I like once they squish up towards me for heat snuggles, and I like once they climb into my lap for a nap.
Nonetheless.
There’s nothing, and I imply nothing, extra cup-filling than a purring cat curled up right into a cat loaf in your lap. It’s soothing, comforting, and easily the very best feeling to be the individual of a cat.
What’s saving your life proper now?
I’d love to listen to within the feedback beneath!
I’ve written these posts in 2018 (child Violet!), 2020 (child Astrid!), 2021, and 2022. I can’t account for the lacking years, nevertheless it’s fascinating to me that a number of of the objects every winter are the identical: books and the library, meals supply, group.
