Approaching the new year is a wonderful invitation to pause and reflect. What were your favourite moments in 2020? What are you proud of? What was challenging? Unfortunately, we rarely accept this invitation. As the year draws to a close, we tend to rush to our next project instead: New Year's resolutions.

Although setting goals may be helpful, ambitions can also stress us out. By writing down a long list of New Year's Resolutions, we put ourselves under pressure to be perfect, overachieving super-humans. After being struck by a pandemic in 2020, we really deserve to start the new year by being kind to ourselves. It is time to make our 2021 goals all about Heiterkeit. Agreed? Then our five alternative New Year's Resolutions are for you.

1. Make listening a priority

Have you ever caught yourself phrasing a response in your head while somebody else was still talking? While this is normal and common, it can prevent you from really focussing on the conversation. Set active listening as your goal for 2021.

Start by banning your smartphone from conversations, ignore your mental to-do list and learn to just be in the moment. This New Year's resolution will reward you with lots of quality time and meaningful connections with your loved ones. The outcome? More Heiterkeit

2. Retreat to nature regularly

Erase the link between outdoors and exercising. If you love running, that's great. If you don't, that's great too. Don't turn it into an all-or-nothing scenario, but make your resolution merely about spending more time in nature, no matter how.

A simple walk in the forest, for example, is perfect to lift your spirits, inhale the fresh air and declutter your mind. Mother Nature will automatically help you recharge your batteries and bring Heiterkeit into your life.

3. Practise mindfulness

Mindfulness is a non-judgmental awareness of yourself and your current emotions. It can help you retreat to an inner calmness and balance instead of letting a situation overwhelm you. Learning this ability is a powerful resolution for 2021 because when you are mindful, you are in charge of your feelings and actions.

For a start, try guided meditation or mindfulness podcasts. Many people also see yoga as a valuable resource. When you become more advanced, you can learn breathing techniques or body scan meditations. Consciously experiencing your environment through all five senses may also increase your awareness for the present moment.

4. Take care of others

The spirit of giving is a heiter spirit, so include others in your New Year's Resolutions too. Why not surprise your parents with homemade cookies or a sweet card to thank them for their everlasting support? Or how about doing the groceries for your elderly neighbour? You can also be kind to animals! Walking dogs from the shelter will spark joy for both yourself and your furry friends in 2021.

5. Say yes to Heiterkeit more often

Whilst it is important to value our responsibilities and duties, we must not forget that life is short. In 2021, make it a priority to follow your heart. Having a wonderful time with friends on a weeknight? Why not do what makes you happy and enjoy yourself.

You prefer time for yourself instead? Then how about a night at home with your favourite book? You alone decide what your soul needs. Just say yes to the things that make you heiter!

New Year's Resolutions are a great way to make conscious choices and rethink our priorities. But instead of putting the screws on yourself with exaggerated self-improvement goals, shift the focus of your 2021 resolutions on experiencing as many moments of joy as possible. We wish you a happy new year filled with loads of Heiterkeit!

Image: Benjamin Geissler-Evans, heiter magazine

Words: Marina Hoyer

Marina Hoyer is a writer from Hannover, Germany who currently lives in Thessaloniki and Thassos Island in Greece. She works in PR and primarily writes editorial articles for sustainable fashion and lifestyle magazines. Apart from looking at fashion, beauty and lifestyle, Marina’s writing also depicts personal themes such as self-development, well-being or relationships.

During this crazy year where we all were forced to slow down, where plans were impossible to make and we had more free time than ever, many of us turned to the same pastime. Cooking.

Watching people discover their inner Julia Child, embracing their mistakes, getting inventive when ingredients were hard to come by and making an effort to minimise food waste was a beautiful thing. Food has always been a central part of my life. My entire family loves to cook and eat. So when I meet others that are cut from the same cloth, I can’t help but feel an affinity to those people.

In October I was invited to the small holding and event space, Mello View on the border of Somerset and Dorset. I’ve known Vicky and Ed, the owners of this food oasis, for just over a year. They needed new photography of their recently completed barn and I was more than happy to photograph it for them, giving me a legitimate excuse to trade the bustling streets of London for the muddy country roads of Somerset.

Like me, Vicky and Ed had once lived in London. In 2014 however they decided to leave the city so that they could start their dream of living off the land, growing and rearing what they ate as well as cooking and entertaining for others. They eventually found a 1950’s cowshed with an unobstructed view of Axe Valley. Ed began building their dream home, which has all been documented by the Channel 4 series Grand Designs. Several years later, they’re now married with two beautiful boys, a few cows, pigs, chickens, ducks and hens. They’ve created a beautiful little pocket of greenery with a farm garden that would be an endless source of inspiration for any chef or home cook.

It was a sunny day but the Autumn air was crisp and by the end of the shoot we were all ready for something warming. Ed, who had an effortlessness way about him in the kitchen, that only a practiced chef would have, began to make us lunch. As we chatted, he chopped, sautéed and stirred the ingredients together. I had no idea what he was cooking up but I’d learned over time that whatever it was, it would be delicious.

When the stew was finally done we were more than ready to dig in. Hearty, flavourful and entirely delicious it has now become a staple in my home. Though I only tried for the first time this October, I’ve already recreated this stew three times. It’s important to note that this recipe is quite simple. What makes it magic is the quality of the ingredients. Ed had reared the pig himself, the chicken stock he’d also made the day before and all the vegetables were grown on his property. The chickpeas I’ve learned were these from Brindisa. Though I’m not asking you to rear your own pig or buy these specific chickpeas, just make sure that you’re buying something good. It’ll be worth it!

Feel free to adjust the quantities to your personal liking. It’s quite an easy stew to adapt. This recipe is for a stew as there isn’t much liquid, but if you’d prefer it to be a soup simply add more stock and/or water as you see fit.

You can follow Vicky and Ed’s story here.

Mello View Stew Recipe

Ingredients

700g jar of Chickpeas (best if in a glass jarred, not tin)

500g Chicken broth, can add more if you’d like the stew a bit more soupy

2 Parsnips, cut in quarters lengthwise

3 Carrots, sliced

2 leeks, sliced into thin rounds

3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

150g Bacon lardon, cubed

1 cup of water

Instructions

Fry the bacon on a medium heat in a dutch oven until it begins to brown. Once browned, remove with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat in the pot.
Toss the carrots into the pot with the bacon fat and sauté until softened.
Next add the leeks. Once softened, add the garlic. Season with pepper.
Add the bacon back in along with the parsnips and chicken broth and a cup of water. Let it simmer for an hour, add water if it starts to dry up.
Ten minutes before you serve, add the chickpeas to the stew. When it’s at a consistency that you like, serve.

Words & images: Ariana Ruth

Ariana Ruth is the Editor-in-Chief of Table Magazine, a bi-annual publication sharing food stories and the people that make up the food community.

5 New Year's Resolutions for more Heiterkeit