Kate's Five Things #46

Viva La Quiet Life

Catching Up

My in-laws treated our family to a seven-day trip in Mexico last week, and I’ve been coming down from the travel and holiday madness a week later than usual. The sun and sea were incredible. I had not realized how starved I had become for new smells, flavors, accents—all the gifts that come with travel. There were highs and lows (hello, upset tummy), and nothing like your own bed after the six-week sprint toward the end of the year.

This was the first time we planned a trip for this time of year, and right after the gifts were unwrapped and the decorations packed away, it felt terrific. Coming home felt like getting hit with a garbage truck.

We had the house in order, laundry done, and everything set for a smooth transition, and still, I had this lingering feeling of dread when thinking about opening social media. I decided not to bully myself into posting and instead have been sitting on the sidelines, consuming what delights me, and enjoying it. It wasn’t the stuff or the laundry or the clutter that was making me anxious. It was the lack of time and space to just be.

While it is midway through January and this year feels nothing like years prior, I don’t have to jump on the hamster wheel just yet. So, I’m not rushing back into work with a robust editorial calendar. I have a huge list of ideas I’ll chip away at and maybe just sit with for a while. What a thought, to make things and sit with them and share when it feels like the right time.

I love my time here on Substack, so the plan for the time being is to write, work on the big project I’ll share with you (as soon as I can), make some things that are fun, and find my way back to whatever it is that is calling for me to be quiet right now. My hunch is that it’s less time thinking about myself and more time working on how I show up for others.

It takes time to get acclimated when we find ourselves in new territory—a big life transition or possibly opening a new door in our psyche. I’m realizing how much of the natural world is nonlinear and how special it is to grant yourself the space to be that way, too. We can know we’re moving in a different direction and not know what to do with it.

House Call Last Week…

In last week’s House Call, “Reflecting on 2024,” I reviewed the top posts from 2024. You can read them all with a 7-day free trial. In a second House Call post, “My New Year’s Resolutions for 2025,” I shared three principles for living life to the fullest in the new year.

How I'm feeling this week…

I googled “How to deal with a difficult person” the other day and discovered yet another reason we hold on to people-pleasing behavior. When the people who benefit from complacency realize you are over it, things get weird. I don’t have any answers, just a lot of discomfort. It’s really freeing to realize no matter how much we care, we cannot change someone by giving more of ourselves. So, it’s time to stop giving energy when it’s not my issue to solve—another reason to lean into this quiet period. Fingers crossed it’s enough and things get better.

What's in my cart…

Santa gifted me three Salt and Stone products I brought to Mexico. OH, how I loved the treat of using them daily. I highly recommend the deodorant (I got this scent) and Joe and I used the body wash and body mist. Each combined uniquely with our pheromones, resulting in an overall sexy vibe. Too bad it was a family vacation! Thank you, Santa.

I packed lightly this trip and found the key to a versatile beach vacation wardrobe is mix-and-match separates. Everything I brought with me was black, cream, and red. I packed some cute linen tops for dinner. I wore two one-piece suits to the beach and around town. Both suits (my favorite red one by Summersalt and favorite black one from Reformation) worked with all the pants and shorts I brought. I brought one dress (usually, I index more here because it takes less thought)—this Leset dress was perfect for feeling like I was in PJs but looked put together. I felt like I had something new to wear each day and I repeated each item multiple times. Of course, this only works if you can wash items, but the concept is sound; without laundry access, I would have brought a couple more items to rotate. I purchased beaded necklaces and a straw bag and lived in my Lorna Murray hats (this cotton one and this packable accordion fold one).

We’re going back in March, and I kept notes of what I was missing and didn’t bring. This time, I will be getting all waterproof makeup. Perhaps a post dedicated to my packing list would be worth it.

What I'm consuming…

I devoured Sandwich by Catherine Newman in a day and revisited Intermezzo by Sally Rooney with time and space to let all the nuance and subtleness of their inner dialogues set in. I have to talk to someone about it! So many thoughts!!!!

What resonated with me…

Becoming Nobody by Ram Dass. Most of what I’ve learned lately can be reduced to a simple (but not simplistic) act of letting go. We hold on to things that do not matter to avoid letting go, and it distracts us from what really matters to us. Because eventually, we must let go of the things and people we love, too. Letting go of the distractions now means we can spend our lives appreciating all we have while we have it. I would hate to wake up and realize I lost precious time with my family because I was distracted by striving to be someone we’re not. It’s a constant practice to return to this humbling truth and also really beautiful and freeing.

A question I've been asking myself lately…

What do I need?

I don’t really know how to answer that question. Perhaps even pausing to consider it as one worthy of a response is a shift that will bring a greater sense of inner trust.

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Home of the Week - on hiatus for a bit!

Note: We’re pivoting from Space of the Week to Home of the Week to feature real people sharing real-time stories, photos, and updates of their evolving homes. If you have a submission, email us at hello@witanddelight.com with the subject line HOUSE CALL FEATURE.

Kate