HEYDAYS WITH ANNE

Hello there! How are have you been doing lately? I have actually decided to stop counting the days of quarantine and live each day as it is. At first, I thought it was such a disorganized and passive way to approach the situation but it honestly helped me a lot in a lot of ways - mentally and emotionally most especially. I have realized that the more I counted time in isolation and kept reminding myself of the things I cannot do at the moment, the more I forget about the joys that happen in my life daily. 

I know this is truly easier said than done, but it pays to get yourself to decide on what is good for you and your wellbeing. If this means snoozing off your notifications on social media for a time, deactivating your account, or simply limit what you feed your brain and heart with, I wish to tell you that I am with you.

Speaking of wellbeing, today's Heydays With entry actually centers on a creative personality who celebrates self-care and self-awareness. A few months ago while we were still completely locked down at home, she was actually one of the people I tapped for the Heydays With series, she was kind enough to participate and create a collage for the series and shared some of her thoughts with me.

Mix Media Collage by Anne Recto

The collage that I made centers on self-care. Regardless of how you feel right now, take this as a privilege of slowing down and stay where you are right at the moment. In times like these, anxiety is taking over and it is important to give yourself time; make a time capsule, or a letter to your future self. Take a virtual tour of a museum and make it as your own playground. Whatever technique it is, make sure to give yourself time to slow down, calm your inner-being, and seek inner peace.

Mix Media Collage by Anne Recto

Take a bath, long baths are fine! You deserve an alone time to make yourself feel all the warmth and get yourself to relax at the same time. Treat yourself like a queen. Leaving yourself tired, worried, or burdened will only make you feel more helpless and this is really not doing any good for your immune system. Take time to meditate and collect yourself.  - Anne

Young Interior Design associate Anne Recto describes herself as a carefree person; she believes that being carefree does not mean ignoring the world but more of pursuing the idea of allowing yourself to process different scenarios and situations and choosing to come out of it without being consumed by anger or irritation. As somebody who witnessed her grow over the years, I can very much attest to her positive energy and her ability to rise above challenges and situations in a brave and optimistic manner. I sat down and asked Anne a couple of questions about her and her creative principles last April and I wish to share with you snippets from our conversation. I know that we are all in tough times right now, and I hope that these tiny bits of encouraging words would speak to you as much as it did to me.

THERE IS BEAUTY IN IMPERFECTION.

Inspired by things that are often perceived by many as incomplete or cluttered, Anne draws the idea of disarray into an opportunity to visualize and process how it can be built back up and fixed. She looks up to the works of Leonard Koren, an acclaimed multidisciplinary artist, designer, and author who is known for his thought-provoking writings on aesthetics and design. "I love how he made the principles of Wabi-Sabi rise up to become an aesthetic trend in interior spaces" quips Anne. Koren's book Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets and Philosophers delves its readers on the Japanese philosophy on imperfection and natural beauty, it helps us appreciate how decay brings out poetic ideas or inspirations for creating and making.

Anne has shared that as an artist and Interior Design associate, the principle of Wabi-Sabi resonates with her in more ways than one in both her creative and personal life. Wabi-Sabi is a Japanese philosophy that celebrates imperfection, it seeks beauty on each flaw and accepts every angle of it knowing that it is part of the natural cycle of life. Drawing from its meaning and values, Anne strongly believes that the quirks and imperfections in life bring out the most beautiful inspirations and ideas as well as lessons we can all keep and apply in our daily activities and practices.

Images from Anne's Instagram

ADVENTURE IS EVERYWHERE, IT'S ONLY A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE.

Anne believes that adventure is not place-centric. She has shared that adventure to her is not defined by a specific place or country, it is actually about discovering and curiosity. To her, anything that drives us to explore is an adventure that unfolds as we continue to peel every layer of it. It can entail discovering a new drink, reading a new book, or be in a completely different space or place; to Anne, adventure is both mundane and extraordinary. Adventure can also be found on weekends for this creative soul. On weekends, Anne spends an ample amount of time creating, whether it be sketching, painting, arranging flowers, and digital collages. Books are also part of her holiday or weekend agenda as it expands her to a completely different horizon, away from the usual, away from distractions.

Images from Anne's Instagram

An example of adventure for Anne would be her recent purchase of the Kalimba to which she has been actively learning to play. Occasionally, she would share short clips of her playing her recent learnings, and personally, listening to her play worship songs using it is uplifting and relaxing at the same time. Adventure is indeed everywhere, and Anne shows us how we can seek to create our own in both small and thrilling ways.

Images from Anne's Instagram

WE ARE ALL LIKE FLOWERS IN A FIELD, WAITING TO BLOOM AND INSPIRE.

When I asked her to choose a dream place and profession, she eagerly responded "Probably a musician in Amsterdam, because, flowers". Anne has a fancy for flowers and you can basically see that in her art, her quirky outfits, even on her Instagram feed. Metaphorically, flowers are often representations of ourselves and its different phases could be seen as those random, often unexpected encounters we go through in life. I'd like to believe that this is also one of the reasons why a creative soul like Anne associates herself a lot with flowers; there are different blooms in the field and each has different ways of growing and wilting, but at the end, there would always be someone or a group of people who would notice it and get inspired by it.

Anne is one of the dear people I care about. Not only do we share the same interest and passion for Interior Design but I also really care about her like a little sister. I was given enough years to witness her grow and bloom into a young woman who continuously seeks for God's heart and braves in every single challenge victoriously. I find strength and encouragement in her courage and the constant pursuit of hope. She is one of the existing truths that age is not a measurement of wisdom as I also get to learn a lot from her life and growth.

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"My kind of heyday is when I get to bloom into a person that makes people smile. I consider those small and simples things as a great success in life."

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Wherever you are and whatever you are feeling at the moment, I hope you know that somewhere out there, you continuously bloom and shine bright to somebody. You are beautiful in every way 🌟

As always, wishing you light, love, and a Happy Heyday!

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Hello There Anne