Good, hard things

I live in a place where there are palm trees! I knew that, yes, but sometimes I see them and smile because I never would have guessed they would be part of the landscape around me. Texas itself is no longer in "monsoon season," as I briefly called it. It's hot, very hot in fact, and I'm desperately trying to remember what I wore last year when it was so hot to stay cool and somewhat presentable. Lately, I'm wearing my trusty Saltwater Sandals and lightweight dresses like the one below (a stripey, 100% cotton, summery dress I found secondhand).

Speaking of clothing, I'm in the midst of another six month hiatus from spending on clothing and accessories. It was fairly challenging last time, but this time it's been a bit harder. Before I started the hiatus, I got a few new items, and while I'm wearing them a lot, I've noticed a shift in my buying habits, even in the last year. I used to tell myself It's okay to buy this because it's inexpensive. And now, my justification trends more along the lines of It's okay to buy this because its high quality and I'll wear it a lot. My buying habits may be a bit more sustainable—I'm buying items that are "my style" and that integrate into my closet well, and items I'll foresee myself wearing for multiple seasons. But either way I look at it, if I'm not filling a need, I'm filling my closet with things I don't need. I've got a lot to learn and some new habits I'd like to better integrate. I'll continue to blog a bit about my experience this time around, as the hiatus lasts until December first.

My sister-in-law, Katelyn, gave us a daily calendar with quotes and witty sayings. I especially liked one of them from this week, reminding me of my previous post about belonging:

Gardens are not made by singing "Oh, how beautiful!" and sitting in the shade. Rudyard Kipling

Good, beautiful things take work and attention and getting up to do it. It's good for me to do hard things. Other things that take time and attention and are well worth the investment:

• reading books that challenge and refine my mind
• making food from scratch at home
• every knitting project ever
• letter writing
• processing and feeling my way through this life, rather than numbing myself to it

Let's get out of the shade of wishful thinking, de-weed bad habits (whatever that may be for you), and make time for the hard, good things in life.