Undaunted Joy #130 Guest Post Claire Wittlieff

Joy in the Routine

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Every once in a while, I like to feature a guest post. It is good to look at joy from a different view than just mine.

This week Undaunted Joy features writer Claire Wittlieff. Claire is a current student of Alma College’s MFA in Creative Writing program. Her attention to detail, especially in this piece, is a hallmark of her writing. If you know me, you know I love my routine, so I truly connect with this essay and hope you do too.

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Joy in the Routine

Maybe it’s because I’m getting older, but I don’t roll over on the weekdays like I used to when my alarm goes off. I pop up to go downstairs, where my mother is usually sitting in her chair, with a cup of coffee on the end table and her makeup spread out before her. I’ve watched her execute her own routine for 23 years, so of course I find it natural to transition into my own. I wake up about an hour earlier than necessary because I’m learning to enjoy slow mornings. Sometimes I have my own cup of coffee (black, minus the Coffee Mate that my mom drinks more than the coffee itself), I read my favorite blogs, and I complete the New York Times mini crossword. Eventually, I get dressed and bundle myself up to go out into the cold Michigan morning, my car covered in dew. I either put on a pump-up playlist (Psychedelic Furs’ “Love My Way” or The Clash’s “Rock the Casbah” are common denominators) or I listen to Dax Shephard’s Armchair Expert podcast, where I enjoy stellar interviews with Drew Barrymore, Robert Downey Jr. and Jason Bateman, to name a few. The morning drive is the best part, where I pass by fields and farms, where I observe the orange sky in the east, where I imagine snow to be present in as soon as the next few weeks. I walk into my office, quiet and containing the potential of what the day could be. I go to the bookstore and get the best cookies and a chai latte-lately the flavors have been pumpkin spice and gingerbread. The employees would probably understand if I said that the spice reminds me of my grandmother’s kitchen accented by woodwork and winter greens, but I don’t verbally express it. The day consists of meetings, students, colleagues, plans, processes, and everything that makes the day go by. I drive home and I sit down to read, write, or watch a movie, letting whatever I choose consume me. I go to bed, and the cycle repeats. I don’t find monotony in this structure, but rather joy in the routine. I have a job that I enjoy, I have people that I love to talk to, I have so many ideas and outlets that stoke the wildfire in my brain that never wants to cease…and I wouldn’t trade a single bit of it for the world.

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Claire Wittlieff is a recent graduate of Alma College with a Bachelors degree in English and secondary education, and a current student of Alma College’s MFA in Creative Writing program. She works at West Shore Community College where she strives to support students to the best of her ability. Claire is an avid reader and writer who is open to any and all book recommendations and discussions.

If you would like to write a guest post, send me your submission. Perhaps we can find a home for it! With over 2k followers, I’d love to use this Substack to amplify other joyful voices.

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In my own news, I am heading to France in 10 days, so I hope to post some joyful FRENCH content for you! Keep your eye out here and on social media for all the good pictures and anecdotes.