To discover some aid in a world that too typically feels tumultuous and deeply fractured, I’ve not too long ago been making an attempt to domesticate extra enjoyment of my life.
This hasn’t essentially meant looking for out extra pleasurable experiences. It can merely be reveling in good issues that occur every day, regardless of how small. The further step of acknowledging and feeling grateful for a meandering stroll, a pint of recent strawberries or the rediscovery of a once-favorite track has been linked to impressive mental health benefits.
A good friend and I’ve even begun texting one another about our delights on the finish of the day. Telling her the issues that made me glad (most not too long ago, exploring a brand new neighborhood grocery retailer) and listening to her optimistic experiences (yesterday, a neighbor’s yard social gathering) is now one among my common delights, too. Joy begets pleasure, it appears.
That brings me to at present’s e-newsletter. In June, as we wrapped up the primary six months of the yr, I requested you about the perfect factor that had occurred to you to date in 2023. You informed me about whale sightings, a spectacular eightieth celebration, falling in love, momentous graduations and extra.
All your responses had been, properly, pleasant.
Here are a few of them, calmly edited for readability. Enjoy.
“I became a grandmother! I am now fully retired from my teaching career of 35 years and am babysitting my grandson full time. It is a joy to watch him grow and develop. When I was raising my own two children I was balancing motherhood and my work life, so I rushed through those baby years. Now I can sit back and enjoy every little bit of it.” — Victoria Evashenk, Cupertino
“My major win this year: I started volunteering at an animal shelter and ended up adopting a senior bulldog named Knuckles. He has been a bright light in the chaos.” — Barbara Soares, Sherman Oaks
“I have been getting outside and painting the native Matilija poppies this spring. After all the healing rains this year, these giant poppies have been exploding. I found some up in the Santa Monica Mountains, along the L.A. River, by the 134 Highway and even in the cracks of concrete parking lots.” — Lois Keller, Studio City
“I recently went on my third whale-watching tour with a friend, and we saw a humpback breach from the water — a first for me! The whole boat gasped and cheered.” — Barton Lynch, San Diego
“I’m really, really proud of myself and my fellow 2023 college graduates — many of us began college before the pandemic, had our freshman years disrupted and torn apart once Covid started, endured over a year of remote school and an overwhelming sense of disconnect from our campus communities and then made it back to campus to complete our final two years in person. The class of ’23 is proof of the commitment, adaptability and enduring hope of today’s young adults.” — Megan Musolf, Isla Vista
“My greatest delight so far this year is the unprecedented abundance in my hillside garden after the terrifying atmospheric river rainstorms of winter. Plants that had struggled to survive through years of drought and skimping irrigation have now doubled in size and dance in the breeze in glorious colors.” — Carol Campbell, Oakland
”I bought engaged for the primary time at 57. We met one another throughout the peak of the pandemic, in August 2020, on-line, after I did a present on courting within the time of Covid-19. My journalistic curiosity and cynicism led me to seek out out for myself what was occurring to courting throughout such an uncommon time in historical past.” — May Lee, Los Angeles
“Since Christmas, my partner, Clebia, had been planning a surprise party for my 80th birthday in June. The party itself was not the surprise — it was the guests. I had no clue who was coming.
First to arrive — a friend from Brazil whom I’ve known since the ’60s, when I was a Peace Corps volunteer. Then a friend from Seattle. The next day, one of my dearest friends from Orange County walked in my door and joined me for breakfast al fresco on the deck. She had sent me ceramics through the mail, so I had assumed she wouldn’t come. At the party the next day, two of my besties from high school came, one from Chicago and one from L.A. They brought an album of high school photos they’d created for me. Another couple from Pasadena arrived, and a Peace Corps colleague from the East Bay who struggles with Parkinson’s climbed my 40 steps. A friend I’ve known since 1973 from San Anselmo brought bouquets from her garden, and my next-door neighbor brought me art supplies.
I had no idea that these beloved people were coming. If my jaw had dropped any farther, there’d be a dent in my floor. I was humbled and astounded that they would travel so far to help me celebrate my 80th year on the planet.” — Anne Karin Glass, San Francisco
Where we’re touring
Five favorite places in Napa Valley, as picked by the writer and influencer Christina Najjar.
And earlier than you go, some good news
Tuesday wasn’t simply July 4. It was additionally the shut of an extremely snowy ski season in Tahoe.
Thousands gathered on the slopes for the final run of the season, some in bikinis or Speedos and a few waving flags to rejoice the vacation, The San Francisco Chronicle reported.
“This has been a sensational year,” Maddy Condon, a spokeswoman for Palisades Tahoe, mentioned Tuesday afternoon from the summit. The resort logged 723 inches of snow this yr, in contrast with a mean of 400, the news outlet reported.
“People have been coming from all over the world,” Condon mentioned.
Thanks for studying. I’ll be again tomorrow. — Soumya
P.S. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword.
Maia Coleman and Johnna Margalotti contributed to California Today. You can attain the staff at CAtoday@nytimes.com.
Content Source: www.nytimes.com
