This year is ripe for some serious loving. There are plenty of good things you can do for yourself, your family, your friends, your community, and the world. I’m calling it: it’s time to get gooey. Here’s my list of gooey things to do (and to be) in 2022. You can do them individually or with others; this year particularly supports small-group activities. Please add to it.
In no particular order:
FOOD
Eat luscious foods: in-season fruit, as ripe and as fresh as possible; chocolate (as healthy and as little added sugar as possible); hearty fulfilling soups through the cooler months. Generally any of the following are ideal for this year: green beans, parsnips, spinach, melons, apples, peaches, apricots, figs, walnuts, almonds and the herbs mint, thyme, musk, vervain, rose leaves. There is a caveat, though. With a 6-year (2022), there can be a tendency to enjoy the good life a little too much because we’re keener to share food with family and friends. So, moderation is still the best policy despite the temptations.
WATER
Plenty of fresh clean water, filtered if you can’t get spring water. (You know the saying doing the rounds: get a filter or be a filter?) Also, start the day with a squeeze of lemon or a little kombucha or a hint of apple cider vinegar in water, warmed if you like.
MUSIC, FILM, READING
Listen to music that inspires and makes you feel warm and loved-up inside. Same with films, plays and books.
NATURE
Spend time in nature, as often as possible. Breathe in fresh air. Ground yourself. Parks, especially wild ones, are good, lying in long grass, walking barefoot on the beach, plunging into the water — if you're near it and it’s warm enough for you; this is about feeling good.
Plant a garden or tend to the one you already have. Make it vibrant, colourful, healthy and bountiful. Arrange flowers in your house.
WARMTH
Have saunas and hot tubs/spas infused with your favourite herbs; from the list above: thyme, musk, vervain, rose leaves are good.
BODY LOVE
Have massages, shiatsu, reiki. In spring and the warmer months, undertake a detox. See Fasting.
EXERCISE
Love your body with gentle exercise: yoga, tai chi, dancing, walking, swimming. You can, of course, do other more strenuous exercise if that suits, but, at minimum, move that body.
COLOURS
Surround yourself with pastel colours in fabric, in art, in flowers. In particular, pink and soft blue are primary in a 6-year, as are earth tones such as green and chocolate brown.
CREATIVITY
If you’re a creative, play your instruments, paint, sculpt, do art. Even doodle.
FLOW AT HOME
Make your home — or room, if you don’t get to play with the whole house — as beautiful as possible. Declutter it, make it flow, make it just how you want it.
REST
Go all soft: curl up on the lounge. Pamper yourself and encourage others to as well. Take time out. Rest, rest, rest. Siesta isn’t just for southern Europe and Mexico in summer. Afternoons, 3-5pm, are perfect to take some time out, at least on non-working days. Do not feel in the least bit guilty. If it feels right, just do it. Naps are wonderfully healing. In Sleeping, there’s a section on napping.
INTIMATE LOVE
Fall in love! A 6-year is not overly focused on romantic love so much, though it certainly does not preclude it. It’s more about your intimate circle, whether that be family or friends. Spend time with them. And don't look at the clock. Enjoy time with them. You'll all know when it’s time to do something else.
SOCIAL TIME
Enjoy the company of others. Share your time, your space. A 6-year favours smaller gatherings and dinner parties. Be generous with others, as you feel is right. No overdoing it, no taking on anything that doesn’t feel right. Ask this question of everything: does it make my heart sing or sink?
TL,DR* It’s all about self-love this year, doing beautiful things for yourself and sharing with others in small, more intimate settings.
* Too Long, Didn’t Read, aka the short version