Instagram story viewer> @joyfulpauseclub> Posts

Kelly | The Joyful Pause Club

@joyfulpauseclub

93

followers

431

following

Reading widely, following my curiosity 📚
Books, creative projects & unexpected discoveries
Keen to find the joyful pauses in life.

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Confession: I cannot walk past a bookshelf, even in the supermarket. 📚

So today I popped to the supermarket and as usual I had to stop to have a look at the books. Today, there was a lady standing in front of it and we got chatting. She was trying to choose a book for her holiday so naturally we got chatting about books and the choices available. She told me she always reads far more on holiday than at any other time of year. I can see the appeal!

It was only a little conversation but it made an ordinary daily moment a bit more interesting!

One of the things I love about books is how easily they bring readers together. You can find yourself chatting away to a complete stranger simply because you're both interested in what to read next.

So I'd love to know, where's the most unexpected place you've ended up chatting about books with someone? ☕📚 by @joyfulpauseclub

2

0

7 days ago

Why is it so much easier to notice what’s wrong than what’s lovely?

One difficult email.
One awkward conversation.
One thing going wrong.

And suddenly, that’s the bit our minds keep returning to.

As a mindfulness teacher, I think one of the most useful things we can practise is simply becoming more aware of where our attention goes.

Noticing the difficult things matters. But they don't have to be the only things we notice.

The warm cup of tea.
The patch of sunshine.
The song you love.
The little moment that made you smile.

Mindfulness isn't about pretending everything is wonderful.

It's about widening our attention enough to notice that the difficult thing isn't the whole story.

So here's a little pause for today:

Let’s fill the comments with little moments of joy. What’s something lovely you noticed today? 💜

#mindfulness #everydayjoy #noticingjoy #mindfulliving #wellbeingforwomen by @joyfulpauseclub

2

0

9 days ago

In the ongoing saga of us moving house (15 months and counting!) there are certain things that keep me on an even keel.

Mindfulness

Journaling

Walks

Books

As a book lover, number 4 has sadly become a bit of a heartbreaking one because it has dawned on me that although we are moving to a slightly bigger house, there isn’t as much room for my books any more. And that is hard! Overflowing bookshelves have been my comfort from childhood through to adulthood and the thought that I am going to need to cull my book collection is…well incredibly hard. So I have begun the process of deciding what stays and what goes and some books have been an easy decision that I cannot part with but others have been much, much harder! Now how can I make my dreams of a narrowboat library come true?

Which books would you never part with? by @joyfulpauseclub

4

2

24 days ago

I like to have this at the front of my Filofax so I can remind myself 'What do I need?'

Maybe it's snuggling down and reading a good book. Or perhaps a 5 minutes meditation between making breakfast for the kids and getting dressed? Maybe it's crafting or going for a really lovely walk. Or a glorious nap. Maybe it's being kind to myself when something isn't going quite right. Whatever it is I try and make a little time for it. And although I might not always get the nap I desperately want or the long walk in the woods I'm craving, I try and do something towards it, whether it's not powering through my day and instead just having a little rest, or going into the garden to feel the sun on my face and the breeze in my hair.

So what do you need today? by @joyfulpauseclub

4

0

a month ago

Some things are just much more fun than they have any right to be. 💜💙💚❤️💛

Buying a new notebook when you already have six.

Choosing a book because you like the cover.

Getting an ice cream when it’s slightly too cold for one.

Walking down a street you’ve never been down before just to see where it goes.

Putting your favourite song on really loud.

Buying the stickers.

Spending twenty minutes in a bookshop with absolutely no intention of being sensible.

Picking up a postcard because it makes you smile.

Buying a postcard because it makes you smile.

Looking at the moon.

Maybe adulthood has made us very good at being sensible. We're busy. We're productive. We're getting things done. And that's all well and good! But I think there's something lovely about noticing the little things that bring us joy too. That could be doing something just because you fancy it. Or taking a few minutes to enjoy something that doesn't need to be useful.

Letting an ordinary day have a little bit of magic in it.

No purpose, no productivity and no self-improvement required.

Just more joy in the ordinary.

What would you add to the list? ✨ by @joyfulpauseclub

9

2

a month ago

Your weekend mission has arrived!

Find all 5 before Monday and see what you notice along the way.

Happy wandering and come back to let me know what you find! 💛 by @joyfulpauseclub

2

0

2 months ago

Well, this was not on my bingo card today. 😂

We joined friends for a walk and a picnic today and after sitting down to eat we were about to head off when we suddenly saw this book from a distance!Naturally, we had to investigate, and inside was a tiny room complete with a Knight Rider poster and a very small David Hasselhoff!

I love finding little unexpected things like this when I'm out and about. There is something about noticing the odd, interesting or completely unexpected details around us that makes an ordinary day feel a little more like an adventure. 🥰

You don't necessarily need to go somewhere exciting to experience that feeling, sometimes it is simply a case of looking around, following your curiosity and being open to whatever you happen to find!

So here's your little Joyful Pause invitation for today: keep your eyes open for something unexpected, interesting or slightly brilliant please and let me know what you find. 🌿

P.S if you are ever around Cambridge there are lots of these Dinky Doors to discover! by @joyfulpauseclub

10

0

2 months ago

Somewhere between being a grown-up and getting on with everything did you accidentally stop doing some of the things you loved?

No judgement because that is true for me too! And lots of women I work with through mindfulness teaching and coaching.

What's one thing you used to enjoy that you'd quite like to bring back? Let's have a list to help inspire each other! by @joyfulpauseclub

2

0

2 months ago

Stop scrolling if you're being harder on yourself than you'd ever be on a friend. What do you need?

Kindness. Every time, kindness.

Not the performative kind and not kindness as another box to tick. Just the quiet, everyday sort: being a little gentler with yourself, noticing something good and saying so, letting rest count as something you've earned rather than something you feel guilty for!

I believe kindness is never wasted. It ripples further than we think.

What does kindness look like for you when nobody's watching? by @joyfulpauseclub

3

0

3 months ago

Yesterday I took a scary step to change things up around here. And as we begin gathering here in The Joyful Pause Club (formerly Nature and Notebook Society), I thought I would pull up a chair, pour a cup of tea and introduce myself again!

For a long time, my life was lived at high speed. I am a former primary school teacher who was on the leadership team which meant my days were packed with bells, to-do lists and the constant pressure of doing more, making progress and doing it as fast as possible.

And as much as I loved being a teacher I found eventually I had to step off the hamster wheel. Today, I am a fully qualified mindfulness teacher and coach and my favourite kind of mindfulness is creative, curious and community building.

This club is not a self-improvement project and it is certainly not just about mindfulness! It is simply about the everyday things that help us feel a bit lighter and more connected to joy!

For me, those paths are:
🌸 Journaling, whether it's a scribble or a full on art page
📖 Getting lost in a book
🍂 Noticing the changing seasons and the quiet beauty of the natural world.
☕ Cultivating tiny, daily rituals that feel like joy

I am here to share these quiet spaces with you and build a community where we can all slow down together. It is absolutely not about being perfect and absolutely no pressure to get it right.

If you have just found your way here, welcome. I would love to know: what is one small thing that has brought you a bit of comfort or joy today? by @joyfulpauseclub

4

0

3 months ago

4

2

3 months ago

Today I spotted someone in the supermarket car park, walking up and down, clearly trying to remember where she'd left her car.

No judgement at all from me as we've all been there!

But it stayed with me on the drive home because that moment, that blank of where the car is parked, isn't really about memory. It's about a mind that was already somewhere else entirely when it parked the car.

Mentally composing a to-do list, replaying a conversation, thinking about what to make for dinner.

The body arrives, but the mind hasn't caught up yet!

It's one of those small, ordinary things that's worth noticing. Not to think of it as a failure but as a signal. A gentle tap on the shoulder that says: you might need a bit of quiet. And give yourself some self compassion!

What's your version of the car park moment? The thing that tells you your mind is full? by @joyfulpauseclub

2

0

4 months ago