APRIL UPDATE
I can't believe I forgot how much I love reading.
In all honesty, I haven't managed to read for the intended half an hour a day every single day as a couple of times life simply got in the way. Some days I was only able to fit in 10 minutes - if I could fit in any time at all - and on other days I ended up spending all evening lost in a book with no intention of stopping once I hit 30 minutes. In the end, I think it all evened out over the month. I have an awareness each day that I have to pick up my book, and I'm now in the habit of taking one everywhere with me in case I find the time to squeeze in another chapter.
As a result, the time spent aimlessly staring at my phone has significantly decreased; I'm hardly ever on my laptop and I'm very close to cracking my ridiculous dependency on social media. While I still read news articles regularly throughout the day, I no longer have a compulsion to check my phone every few minutes to scroll through Instagram or refresh my Facebook newsfeed for absolutely no reason. By breaking the habit of staring at a screen all evening by swapping my phone for a book, I seem to have completely changed my behaviour during the day almost by accident, not that I'm complaining one bit! I'm so pleased I've cut down on my screen time, and although I haven't necessarily felt the effects of it yet I'm hoping that in the long term my eyes and brain will thank me!
It feels so good to have finally made a dent in my pile of unread books (i.e. the entire contents of the artfully organised shelves above my desk...). It seems so foolish to have forgotten how much I simply adore reading, but being one month and five books in I am well and truly back on the reading wagon. I started with a quick read (there were a lot of pictures in How to be Parisian); before reading the novels of what was my favourite film of 2015 and will probably be my favourite film of 2016, Brooklyn and Room; last year's gripping summer must-read The Girl on the Train (the new trailer for the film looks immense!) and the second book from one of my favourite comedians Mindy Kaling, Why Not Me?. These have been top of my list for ages but for some reason I never found the time to actually read them. By forcing myself to set aside the time each day I found myself swept up in the stories, thinking more clearly and feeling exponentially inspired. Nothing beats disappearing into a beautifully crafted world to escape reality, and while I normally achieve this through film I have to admit doing so via a book is much, much better.
(IMAGE SOURCED FROM www.tumblr.com)
MAY PLANS
For the next month I will aim to continue reading for half an hour each day. I'd love to make it a habit, and I feel like I'm almost there!
I'm also going to start cross-stitching again. Over a year ago I started an enormous tapestry of Henry VIII and his wives, and after a few months of continued sewing every day I gave up on it. Henry currently has three and a half wives and no head: it's a bit of a sorry sight!
So, 30 days of cross-stitching...go!
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