After a few months of staring at my bookshelf wondering if it somehow just became a decoration in my room to make me feel and look smart, I finally finished reading a book!
Apop has graciously provided us with books we can turn to when the whole world appears to be turning its back on us and we need to be reassured it’s just a temporary thing. I’d normally shy away from non-fiction and self-help books but I realized I got to do what it takes to feel better in the middle of this worldwide mayhem. So I grabbed the whole set and set aside my scheduled Kdrama marathon weekend (Hospital Playlist 2) and read my first book from the bundle – Kim Dan‘s You Can Wind Down From Time to Time.
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| Can you tell me what am I going to read next based on what’s on my bookshelf? |
The book is a compilation of snippets from our favorite kid stories, and essays on how they relate to the complicated part of our lives called adulting. Yes, I am an adult and I have no idea what I am doing most of the time so it is really nice if there’s some kind of a manual that would remind me not to be scared when things don’t feel right, and that it’s okay to feel lost and confused because eventually, I’ll find my way back home.
When I want to be closer to me
Self-care is one of the many new things I see in my social media feed these days. A lot of people are sharing their own way of coping during this time when the whole world is in turmoil and the days feel dragging and uneasy. Look, it’s way too hard to look at the brighter side of things when you have no idea where to look. In this part of the book, Kim Dan reminds us that stopping just for a moment and appreciating the little things we enjoy is so much better from that grand beach vacation we all look forward to when the lockdown is finally over. Write down your favorites, the things you love doing, and the little pleasures you treat yourself to. For me, it has always been books, music, coffee, and rain, and maybe a little bit of Kdrama. It’s not an escape, but definitely, an effective way to recharge and take stressful things off my head even just for the weekend. Show yourself some love, cheer for yourself, and take care of yourself, because life is self-service.
Life is self-service.
When I miss talking to someone
It was so easy to make friends when I was in kindergarten – I didn’t have to worry about how other kids would feel if I decided I didn’t want to play my kitchen set with them. Now I have to be careful about what I am going to say, especially these days when everyone acts like a snowflake and everything is offensive. But what makes the strongest bond is a dislike towards something – believe me, I’ve experienced this countless times before. Coffee dates with Khendi are not real if we do not talk about people we both disagree on, and now I am beginning to think maybe that’s what made our friendship stood the test of time rather than the fact that we both love the Backstreet Boys in our youth (well yes, until now). Sugar and I have the best bonding moments especially when we talk trash about visual holes and that group of people we call whistleblowers. Look, I am not saying we should promote dislike among our friends – I am just trying to make a point.
Sometimes, we bond stronger when we share dislikes.
When I want to start over
Who would have thought that in this involuntary, solitary confinement, I’d discover how big the world outside is? That there are more things I can do, and that there’s more to life than the one I settled for. Kim always called me Rapunzel – literally because I am always confined in my room on the 3rd floor of my family home with my hair flowing down my butt because I couldn’t even go to the salon to cut it short. It’s just so ironic that the world showed a better version of itself to me, right when I am on my own, confined by the pandemic. I discovered my capacity to learn a new language through watching tutorials and listening to Kpop songs. I found out that my writing skills can take me farther, that I can do more than just uploading somebody else’s stuff on somebody else’s website. I met new and exciting people who are all willing to help me in improving myself and finding out what else I can do. I figured that starting over, in the middle of all this turmoil, is not so bad at all.
We can achieve what we want if we are bound by limited space and time.
You Can Wind Down From Time to Time is an easy read, something you can easily finish in one sitting. This is the kind of book I’ll grab on a lazy weekend afternoon, and I bet it’ll feel so much better to read with a cup of coffee in the sound of the pouring rain. Calming. Relaxing. Comforting.
I wish you could read it too!
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| The complete set. |
xo