“To be happy in life, develop at least four hobbies: one to bring you money, one to keep you healthy, one to bring you joy, and one to bring you peace.” (Stan Jacobs)
Last summer, my stress level was at an all-time high, due to a large workload and a small amount of time taken away from the office. Usually I’m good at balancing work and life, but this presented me with a challenge. One night, while lying in bed unable to sleep, an idea came to me out of nowhere. The more I thought about it, the more I liked it. Today, it is my new hobby: decorating unpainted birdhouses.
It’s been said that hobbies are great distractions from the worries and troubles that plague daily living. For years, my “hobby” was work. While this brought me a sense of accomplishment and value, what it didn’t do was ease stress, bring me joy, distract me from my daily routine, or tap into my creativity.
Often hobbies are viewed as pursuits of the young—learning how to play a musical instrument, joining an athletic team, dancing, singing, collecting action figures, and so on. But as we move into adulthood, we tend to focus on more mature pursuits: raising a family or focusing on a career or education. Over time, mature pursuits are viewed as more legitimate and meaningful, while hobbies are considered a frivolous distraction.
But a frivolous distraction is oftentimes what we need the most. It’s certainly what I needed. By taking the blank canvas presented by a bird house and using paint and decorative elements to create a theme-based indoor decoration, my stress went away. When I work on a bird house, time flies by. I feel joy. I am peaceful. My mind is focused singularly on the task at hand. To date, I’ve transformed 20 birdhouses into such themes as holidays (Christmas, Halloween, Fourth of July), environments (a log cabin in Maine, a church, a moonlit night, a Southwestern Pueblo), animals (dogs and birds), and even a traveling wine van. I find the ideas endless, receive great feedback whenever I post a completed bird house on Facebook, and have even sold a few!
I’ve also learned just how much time each day I spent being “on.” With my hobby, I’ve learned that work doesn’t need to be so all consuming. Now I can flip the switch to “off” and unwind into my newfound passion that brings me joy.
I’ve also learned that hobbies can spark great health benefits: lower blood pressure, reduced stress, the ability to get better sleep, an increased positive outlook, deeper patience, and a sense that life has greater meaning and purpose.
While my hobby was sparked by a stressful time followed by a completely unbidden lightbulb idea, there are ways to find your own late-in-life hobby: rediscover something you loved in childhood, expand a passion through volunteering, take a class in something you enjoy, or simply start a list of new things you’d like to try and see if one sparks a deeper interest. The main thing to remember is that a hobby is something you do for fun!
Amy Dean is a Worcester resident and the author of a number of books, including Growing Older, Growing Better: Daily Meditations for Celebrating Aging. Learn more at www.amydeanwriter.com or contact Amy at adeanwriter@aol.com.
