Brunch for One

It’s Sunday morning.  You’ve slept in after a night out of drinks.  First thing you do is yank yourself from the blankets, clumsily step into the shower, get dressed, and head out to meet your friends at the hottest brunch spot in town.  You sip on mediocre mimosas, munch down a deliciously unhealthy meal, and discuss the happenings that took place during the weekend.  It’s fun, it’s relaxed, it’s routine.  It’s brunching.

But haven’t you ever wondered what other possibilities lie at your sleepy fingertips on a Sunday morning?

We cannot deny that inspiration is at its peak when we first rise out of bed.  It is our time to ponder, to feel the new day’s emotions, to build ideas, to be inspired.  Think about when we were kids.  After a long week of kindergarten, come Saturday and Sunday morning we were giggling at cartoons, coloring our favorite superheroes, or outside making mud pies.  It was a time of peace, creativity, and discovery.

But brunch is just what we do right?  Modern research tells us that patterns of human habit are amongst the biggest culprits of our creativity fading away from us as we age.  Creativity is not a passive process.  According to Psychology Today, creative people are more responsive to sensory stimulation, have higher baseline levels of arousal, and increased goal-directed behavior.  But this isn’t a given birthright.  We have to create creativity.

Set your alarm a few minutes early.  Lie awake in your bed for 15 minutes.  Simply think.  Grab a pen and paper and jot down your thoughts, feelings, and ideas.  Allow yourself the meditative perks of a hot shower.  Treat yourself to a healthy brunch.  Poach an egg; sprinkle salt, pepper, and paprika on it; garnish it with herbs; slap it on a piece of toast.  Then grab a bowl and toss in leafy greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, and a chopped up Asian pear.  Finish the salad with salt, pepper, and simple homemade vinaigrette.  Pour yourself a glass of fresh orange juice.  Vuala!  You have just been brunched.

Sit down in your favorite spot, enjoy your meal, and be inspired.  Read a classic novel, draw a cartoon, paint a scenic landscape, write a poem, build a birdhouse, do anything.  Make Sundays your own.  Make them your haven of creation.

–Juju