My hobbies are what make my life worth living. Is your life worth living? Yes. How? Is it worth living because of hobbies?

Few of us have the passion to love our work, but love we must! So let’s get involved with some hobbies and see how satisfying and enjoyable life becomes.

But what sort of hobbies should one take up? Well, there are countless things that can be termed as hobbies, because a hobby is something that we do “in spare time for pleasure or relaxation”. It is anything that relaxes us and we do it often — reading, baking, making crafts, collecting key chains, pens, etc. So chances are that you already have a hobby, but you don’t know it is termed as a hobby.

Let us look at some popular activities that fall under the ambit of a hobby and how they enrich our lives.

Reading

The first possible hobby is reading. Reading has many benefits. It enhances your writing, improves your spelling and grammar, and increases your vocabulary. Therefore, reading is very educational. However, it is also very fun and exciting because you are in another completely different world. This is what makes reading a very good hobby.

Reading is my favourite hobby and I really don’t know what I would have done without books. Reading expands your horizons and gives you something new and different to enjoy. You can learn almost anything from reading a good book on the subject. Even if you choose to read fiction, you may learn something that is helpful in your life.

Embroidery and knitting

You could also take up embroidery or knitting as a hobby. One of the many good things about these two activities is that it is portable, unlike most other hobbies, such as woodworking or painting. Your embroidery or knitting kit can easily fit into the side pocket of a backpack or the small corner of a purse.

These two activities can also lead to stress relief and be very relaxing.

Craft activities also result in tangible and useful products that can lead to an in increased self-esteem. Doing these also give you a goal. It is like a target that you feel you have to achieve and you keep going until you are successful in achieving it. It is a very good addiction. Once you start knitting or embroidery, or any craft for that matter, you will just not be able to stop. You will want to go on and on.

Cooking

We can also take up cooking as a hobby. Cooking is an excellent hobby for many reasons. Getting to know the basics of cooking can be a great way to eat healthy. Moreover, eating home-cooked meals is a lot more economical than eating out.

Cooking is a very useful hobby and today, it has evolved to such an extent that there is plenty of scope for creativity. Cooking also needs very few resources, most of which are already there at home. And it also does not require a specific qualification to start, just having the passion for tasty food is enough.

Gardening

Another hobby one can take up is gardening. Gardening is a very good hobby because it requires physical effort and it connects us to nature too. Gardening keeps you active.

According to a study by a team at Kansas State University, tasks such as mixing soil and filling pots strengthen our hands. Gardening is a great exercise for both the body and mind. Apart from the obvious benefits of weight loss, studies have proved that gardening decreases the chances of depression, lowers blood pressure and decreases cholesterol levels in blood. Gardening is also helpful in reducing stress.

Photography

One more possible hobby that we can take up is photography. Photography adds so much value to our lives by recording special events, people, places or things, as well as helping us learn and grown as people. It allows you to share your experiences in more meaningful ways, via images, either online or in prints, and photographs can be given as gifts.

Photography is a hobby that almost anyone can get into. It is actually a very unique hobby for this reason, because no matter what your age is, fitness level or technical abilities are, you can always participate. Photography is a hobby that is virtually available to anyone and everyone nowadays thanks to smartphones that now have very good cameras, so you don’t even have to spend extra money to buy a camera like it was done earlier, before the advent of phone cameras.

Playing music and singing

The second hobby that you may want to take up is singing. Music is an important and beautiful part of our lives. Music cheers up one’s heart and lightens up the mood. Music raises one’s state of consciousness, changing the mood, developing the brain and lowering stress levels. Making music your new hobby can heal your body and soul, making you a happier and more well-rounded person.

Learning to sing or play a musical instrument needs lots of practice and patience, thus you can develop the habit of hard work, patience and focus, which will help you in all other things in life.

Physical activities

Another very good and interesting hobby is exercise. Physical hobbies, such as exercise, sports and dancing, are a great way to workout and promote good health. Physical activity helps to stretch and tone muscles, lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, burn fat, balance blood sugar and reduce stress. All these exercises also increase your lifespan. Exercise is also very good for your brain as it can stimulate brain activity.

Exercise can also improve relationships. Some exercises are done alone while others can be done in a group or team. You can build great relationships with people who are interested in the same exercises as you.

Exercise can also put you in a good mood. It has been proven that exercise releases endorphins (the feel good hormone) and lower stress levels.

Last but not least, exercise is fun and enjoyable and that is what is most important about having a hobby — to have fun and enjoy yourself.

So the next time if you are bored, try doing one of the hobbies listed above, or any other that you are interested in. There is plenty in store for us to do at home this summer and if we just start exploring, we can have loads of fun staying busy during vacation.

Published in Dawn, Young World, June 11th, 2022