Aryn Henning Nichols

Hello, dear Inspire(d) friends,

We’ve been having some tough-but-necessary conversations around our house lately – talk of Juneteenth, racism, Black Lives Matter, and the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, talk about COVID-19 and what it means for our immediate and future lives, talk of business and money, and what we have to do to stay afloat – talk about the general (and understandable) unrest in the world right now.

To be clear, we here at Inspire(d) believe in everything that’s so concisely spelled out on those awesome signs going up in neighborhoods all around us: Black lives matter. No human is illegal. Love is love. Women’s rights are human rights. Science is real. Water is life. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.

It’s on us to keep these conversations going. We can and need to do better, and it starts with talking, listening, reading, learning.

Know better; do better.

Ultimately, when we finish these tough conversations, I always try to come back to hope. With Roxie, I compared it to cleaning her room. She loves to reorganize her closet, where she’s made a home for her dolls. Everything comes out of the closet, dumped on the floor. The mess looks much worse than when she started, but then she’s able to carefully put things back in a way that makes more sense. In a way that’s better. And that’s what I hope we can do with this country – this is our chance to rebuild, reorganize, and make this country – this world – a better, more positive, and inclusive place.

Know better; do better.

Along the way, we need to remember there are good people all over doing the work, and we should read/tell/share their stories far-and-wide. That brings us to what WE’RE doing right now – to stay afloat, to do our part, and to better the world: We’re working on the next Inspire(d) Magazine!

Due to COVID-19, we had to adjust our 2020 production schedule. This next magazine will be a Summer/Fall Inspire(d), on stands July, August, September, and October. The following magazine will be a Holiday/Winter Inspire(d), on stands November, December, January, and February. We hope to be back to our normal quarterly schedule in 2021.

Please bear with us as we do our best to get this heartfelt magazine out into the world safely and effectively. We can’t wait to brighten your lives with the positive news of the Driftless world right now.

Want to make sure you get one? We’re doing a BOGO – Buy One/Give One – sale on membership (this is how you get Inspire(d) sent to you in the mail!)! Head over to our Inspire(d) Membership page to sign up. It’s $28 for you and a friend/loved one. We’ll make sure you and they get Inspire(d) in the mail for a year!

Thank you for believing in us and supporting positive news. We’re going to get through this stronger and better than before.

Looking forward,
Aryn

P.S. We got a new canine member of our family this spring – her name is Athena! She’s a bernedoodle, and the photo above is just two days after we got her in late April (she’s MUCH bigger already)! <3

Whew, these are some crazy times we’re living through with this COVID-19 pandemic. When we told Roxie there was no school for four weeks, she just laughed in her bed in disbelief. Not that it’s at all funny – but it does feel pretty surreal. We are strategizing ways to keep getting positive news to you all (have you seen Benji’s Instagram videos yet?!?) and ways to keep supporting the amazing local businesses in our region.

Benji and I also want to make the best of this time with Roxie, while also trying not to freak her (or ourselves) out too much.

It’s been a little trial and error so far, but we’ve made it through four days of staying at home, all together! And so have you! Hooray! Back-pats all around!

We have found a few things that have made it easier for everyone. I know a lot of people are sharing schedules, but for me, lists work better. I get a little stressed if I fall off schedule – the family checklist allows me the flexibility I need, while still granting the satisfaction of a job (or jobs) done!

We thought we’d share our list in case it sparks some inspiration in your house! Be well, our friends! <3

(Just click the image below for a pdf you can print at home!)

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30 Minutes (at least) of exercise daily – this can be inside or outside!

Outside time every day, no matter the weather
I went on a walk in the rain today, and it was refreshing!

Creative or nature of science project
So far, we made a leprechaun trap, planted some seeds, and made a wind sock!

Read
Roxie and I are currently reading the Harry Potter series! Good thing Benji got three of the books and movies from the library!

Dad and Mom work time
Even though we normally work from home, doing so with our kid at home is hard. Plus things are so tumultuous with the world right now, it can be hard to focus. Setting aside specific work times for each parent at home is really important.

Learn something new
On Tuesday of this week, I asked Roxie to write a list of things she wanted to learn about. I said it could be anything – it could even be what she might think inappropriate – and we would see about learning more. Her list included “mustangs from the old times, candles, rubber bands, the Mona Lisa,” and more. And today Benji taught her about feeding and making sourdough!

Declutter one thing or space
It can be just one drawer. Baby steps, people. For me, today, it was our magazine and mail stack.

Clean one thing or space
Again, baby steps. Don’t feel like you have to deep clean the whole house! I cleaned one bathroom today. But nothing makes me feel more sane than clean spaces.

Games or Puzzles
We are playing Five Crowns daily. Today we also did a puzzle. There have been many rounds of “Herd Your Horses” this week too (a 1980s game we bought secondhand at the Depot).

Support your neighbors, community, or world in some way
Buy gift certificates from local businesses. Make a donation to the food pantry. Offer to make a grocery run for an elderly or at-risk neighbor. Put a positive message out into the world via social media or through a cheerful sign in your window. We’re all in this together!

Other fun ideas
From writing letters to FaceTiming friends or relatives to cooking something for the freezer – there are lots of great ways to occupy your time during this period of social distancing.

We’re thinking of you and sending lots of love your way!

XOXO – Aryn

We here at Inspire(d) like to stick with positive news – it’s what we’re all about, and we think it’s an important thing to do, especially in these days of constant – often negative – news at our fingertips. That stream of all-day-every-day events can bog a person down, and make a good day turn bad.

I want to talk a little about that, and my goals with Inspire(d) Magazine. It comes down to weeds (I want to crush them!) and flowers (I have a crush on them!).

So, yeah: I’ve been spending a lot time out in my gardens lately. Okay, rephrase – I’ve been spending minutes here and minutes there out in my gardens lately (because that’s all I get, generally), and I know one thing for sure: the weeds are here. I do – literally – nothing to cultivate them. In fact, I actively attempt to get rid of them. Some days I’m more successful than others.

My flowers, on the other hand, take cultivation. They take care – water, sun, space – I even talk to them, because, damn, I love those things. They bring me a lot of joy. Even at this time of year, when it’s the end of the season and you think, “I should just give up!” it pays to keep at it.  There’re perennials out there that will bring color and joy for years to come, if you spend some time taking care of them.

Negativity is like those little jerk weeds. It is here, and it will spread with no effort. My goal in this life is to help it not spread. I put my efforts in cultivating the positives in this world so that we can have a happier life.

If I can improve one person’s day, it’s worth it. Frankly, if I can improve my own day, it’s worth it. This is life; it’s all we’ve got.

While we choose to not write about negative things in Inspire(d) in an effort to NOT spread negativity, we also attempt to pull the weeds – we can do this by writing about inspiring people, being active in our community, supporting candidates who support our goals, voting, standing up for issues that matter to us, and speaking up when we see or hear something that isn’t just or kind.

We aren’t sticking our heads in the soil, thinking everything is all good, all the time. Things are tumultuous in the world right now. I have never felt the desire to pack it in and just go more often in my entire life. But I keep coming back to this desire – this need – to cultivate these flowers.

I’m talking about you guys. I’m talking about this community. I’m talking about this world. It brings me so damn much joy. It is filled with light, love, and wonderful people.

I was helping deliver the Summer Inspire(d) Magazine a few weeks ago, and while I drove, I was thinking about some personal problems. I came up with three F words (no, not my favorite F word, don’t worry) that have become a bit of a mantra for me over the past month:

Don’t fixate on the problem. Find solutions. Focus on the positive.

So that’s what I’m doing out here – minutes here, hours there, focusing on the positive, and always looking forward with hope, excited to see what blooms next.

XOXO – Aryn