Visual Journal is a new series in which I document slow moments of joy, beauty, inspiration, and wisdom I come across in my everyday life in a dominantly visual format. My hope for the series is for it to serve as a visual way to share what is happening with me as well as serve as a reminder that nothing is ordinary and that the beauty of life reveals itself despite the chaos if we slow down.
After spending some time away from home through the last couple of months, I have appreciated being home as we entered the new year and through most of these initial days of the new year (other than a quick trip to stock-up on essentials.)
While home, I have been prioritizing rest and creativity, by slowing things down and staying present. Besides the rest and creative stuff, there's also been catching up on some yearly admin stuff, like finishing up payments for essentials services and subscriptions for the year or preparing new logs to track time and expenses for 2024.
Speaking of beginning anew, I really enjoyed reading this lovely essay on beginnings published on The Marginalianian. Here are a couple of excerpts:
Creatively speaking, the time at home (and in the studio) has been super helpful. I have been glad to make the most of it and make my way back to Riyaz (practice) with both my music and writing. I am hoping this time spent prioritizing art translates into me finally gaining confidence and being prolific with sharing and showing off my work (a key goal this year after the past few years of showing up quietly and behind the scenes). I am excited to kick-start 2024 with a new poetry-based project (Patreon exclusive) that I am putting finishing touches on and aim to launch this month. I have also been recording more music, especially after gifting myself a iOS compatible microphone (enabling me to record on the move or in remote locations).
As the month has progressed, I have been grateful for pockets of time both at home and in the city. While away, it felt nice to treat myself to good food per usual and spend time with a few of you as I finished up a few city specific tasks. I had hoped to keep the travel bug going and see a couple of friends in Bombay, but decided against it at the 11th hour as I felt my intuition guide my home instead.
While home, I have been making the most by keeping the creative momentum going. I started a new Patreon-exclusive series called ‘Handwritten by Madhur’ where I share handwritten versions of my poems.