When we think about our health and wellbeing, we often focus on the things we feel we should be doing more of: exercising, eating well, sleeping better and managing stress.
But what about the other parts of our lives? How does our home environment make us feel? Are we nurturing our relationships? Do we make time for friendships, creativity and the simple pleasure of cooking a meal?
For this article, I want to explore four areas of the Circle of Life that have been particularly meaningful to me: Social Life, Relationships, Home Environment and Home Cooking. As we will see, Creativity naturally weaves through all of them.
Our Home: More Than Just a Place
Our home environment can have a surprisingly strong influence on how we feel. Of course, we are all different. One person’s perfectly organised home might feel completely unnecessary to someone else. We have different standards, personalities and ideas of what makes us feel comfortable.
Our homes are the backdrop to so much of our lives. They are where we rest, have conversations, laugh, cry, where our children grow up and where we share some of our most precious moments.
Our homes can also give other people a little glimpse into who we are. When we invite someone into our home, we are sharing a part of ourselves with them.
But perhaps the most important question is not how our home looks, but how it makes us feel.
- Does your home feel like a place where you can breathe?
- Does it feel like a sanctuary, somewhere you can recharge, slow down and be yourself?
- Does it feel safe, welcoming and peaceful? A place where everyone can feel at home?
Creating a supportive home environment doesn’t mean having a perfectly styled or organised house. It is about finding ways to make our surroundings work for us rather than against us. Sometimes, even small changes can make a difference.
This brings me to another area of the Circle of Life that has been a journey for me.
Home Cooking.
For a long time, cooking was more of a source of stress than joy.
I have three children, and, as anyone with children knows, they can all have very different opinions about food. What one child happily eats, another might refuse to even look at!
I have gone through many phases since becoming a mother. I wasn’t naturally a great cook, and I certainly didn’t always feel confident in the kitchen. But little by little, I have developed my own way of cooking.
Sometimes dinner is carefully planned, and sometimes I open the fridge, look at what I have and try to create something from it. Sometimes I follow a recipe; sometimes I don’t. I occasionally use a meal delivery service such as HelloFresh, which has given me ideas that I can later adapt. And now, with AI, I can even take a photo of the ingredients I have at home and ask for ideas for a nutritious, family-friendly meal.
It might seem like a small thing, but sometimes having a little help can take away some of the mental load.
For me, the biggest shift has been changing the way I think about cooking. Instead of seeing it as another task I have to do, I am trying to see it as an opportunity to nourish myself and my family.
I am even starting to discover a little passion for creating something delicious and then sitting down together as a family to enjoy it.
In our incredibly busy world, that simple act of sitting around a table together can be incredibly valuable. It gives us an opportunity to slow down, connect and share a moment in our day.
The Many Things Happening Around One Meal
One of the things I find particularly interesting about the Circle of Life is how interconnected its different areas are.
When I prepare a meal, I am not only thinking about Home Cooking.
There might be Creativity involved in deciding what to make with the ingredients I have. And creativity doesn’t mean that everything has to be healthy, beautiful or perfectly planned. Sometimes it is simply about experimenting and enjoying the process.
There are Relationships when I cook with or for my children or my husband. There is Home Environment when we sit together around the table in our home. And if we invite friends or family for dinner, suddenly Social Life becomes part of the experience.
One simple activity can nourish several different areas of our lives.
And perhaps this is something worth remembering: wellbeing doesn’t always require us to add more activities to our already busy schedules. Sometimes it is about finding more meaning and enjoyment in the things we are already doing.
Meaningful Connections
We don’t necessarily need hundreds of people around us. We need meaningful relationships with people with whom we can be ourselves.
Our relationships, whether with our partners, children, family or friends, can have a profound influence on how connected and supported we feel.
And sometimes, especially as adults, creating and maintaining these connections takes intention.
We have work, children, responsibilities, busy schedules and endless things to do. Friendships can easily move further down our priority list, even when we know how much they mean to us.
But our social life is not simply an optional extra. Feeling connected, having people to share our experiences with and being part of a community are all important aspects of our wellbeing.
Sometimes it starts with something very simple: inviting a friend for coffee, joining a local group, trying a new activity or simply making the effort to get to know someone a little better.
It doesn’t always happen naturally. Sometimes we have to create the opportunities ourselves.
Where is the joy in my life?
If I am struggling to find it, what might be getting in the way?
- Could my home environment be draining me?
- Am I feeling disconnected from the people around me?
- Have I stopped making time for friendships?
- Has food become another stressful responsibility rather than something that nourishes me?
- Have I lost touch with my creativity?
These things may seem unrelated at first, but they are not. They are all interconnected, and they all contribute to how we experience our everyday lives.
Sometimes, instead of trying to completely change our lives, we can begin with one small area.
- Clear one corner of your home. Let go of things you no longer need.
- Create a simple cleaning routine, or consider hiring a cleaner if it fits within your budget.
- Invite a friend over for coffee.
- Cook a simple meal and sit down to enjoy it together.
- Try something creative simply because it brings you joy. Join a choir, an art club, a community or religious group, take a course or explore what is available in your neighbourhood.
- Make an effort to connect with the people around you. Sometimes even a simple hello or a smile can be the beginning of a connection.
Small actions can create opportunities for meaningful changes.
There Is No Perfect Circle of Life
I think one of the most important things to remember is that our Circle of Life will never be perfectly balanced. Life doesn’t work that way.
Some weeks we might have plenty of time for friends and family, while other weeks our attention is needed elsewhere. Sometimes we enjoy cooking, and sometimes we are simply too tired and decide to order takeaway instead, that is okay.
The goal is not perfection, and it certainly isn’t about feeling guilty when we don’t manage to do everything we had planned.
The goal is awareness. To pause every now and then and ask ourselves:
- How am I doing?
- How do I feel in my everyday life?
- Which areas are nourishing me, and which areas might need a little more attention?
Sustainable wellness isn’t about doing everything perfectly. It is about creating a life that feels supportive, meaningful and nourishing.
And sometimes, the smallest changes in our everyday lives can make the biggest difference.
With care,
Rannveig
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