There is a certain kind of media that seems as though it has forgotten that ordinary people exist. Scroll for a little while, and it can begin to seem as though everyone is living at one extreme or another. We are apparently supposed to be chasing a dramatic makeover, celebrity drama, arguing about something, worrying about our appearance, achieving impossible goals, or watching the latest unbelievable story unfold.

And sometimes those stories become so familiar that we can practically predict them before reading the headline. There is the dramatic story with the surprising twist. The viral story about an unusual animal. The story reshared until it feels as though we have seen some version of it a dozen times already.

Meanwhile, many of us are thinking:

I just made lunch for my children. I need to fold the laundry. There are apples on the counter. Somebody has a school project. What are we having for dinner?

And honestly, there is something rather beautiful about that.

There is nothing wrong with wanting media that reminds us of good things. A beautiful recipe is not a frivolous thing. A magazine about gardens, books, homes, creativity, travel, tea, family traditions, or handmade things is not disconnected from the world.

In fact, perhaps these things help connect us to it. They remind us that people are still growing flowers, baking bread, and painting pictures. People are still writing letters, visiting friends, and  raising children.

Maybe that is part of what so many of us are looking for. Not a carefully manufactured lifestyle that requires a team of people and unlimited resources or a life that looks impressive from the outside. Just encouragement to make our own real lives more beautiful.

The problem may not be that ordinary life is boring. Everyday life is where so much of our actual happiness lives. It is in the first cup of coffee in a quiet kitchen. The conversation with a friend. The book we cannot wait to return to after the children fall asleep at night. The flowers from the grocery store arranged in an old pitcher. The new recipe that turns out even better than expected.

These things may not be shocking. They may not go viral. But they are real. And that is exactly what makes them worth celebrating.

Thoughtful Reading

One of the quiet freedoms of adulthood is realizing that we can be thoughtful about what we bring into our minds and homes. We do not have to read articles that try to make us feel inadequate about our bodies. We do not have to keep up with every celebrity disagreement. We do not have to follow conversations designed primarily to make us angry. We do not have to fill every spare moment with dramatic headlines, inflammatory and extreme opinions, or stories that leave us feeling as though the whole world has lost its mind.

We can simply choose something else.

We can choose a magazine with a beautiful recipe.

We can discover a new place to visit.

We can find a book recommendation.

We can enjoy a story about someone making something beautiful.

We can read an essay that makes us notice our own lives with fresh eyes.

There is something refreshing about media that does not demand to shock us. Media does not always have to provoke us in order to hold our attention.

Sometimes it can simply inspire us.

A Few Magazines That Feel Like a Breath of Fresh Air

There are still magazines that seem to understand the pleasure of turning pages and discovering something lovely.

Bella Grace has a soft, reflective feeling that celebrates photography, creativity, writing, and the beauty of everyday life. It feels like the sort of magazine you might leave beside your bed and return to more than once.

Magnolia Journal often combines home, food, family, design, and personal stories in a way that feels warm and approachable. The emphasis is often on creating a life and home that reflect the people living there rather than simply chasing whatever is currently fashionable.

The Simple Things, from the United Kingdom, is another wonderful example of a publication that seems interested in the everyday pleasures of life. Recipes, books, walks, seasonal changes, home, and simple ideas are treated as things worthy of attention.

TeaTime Magazine is simply fun. There is something delightful about a publication devoted to beautiful tables, tea, recipes, and the art of slowing down long enough to enjoy an afternoon treat.

Victoria has long celebrated beautiful homes, gardens, travel, history, entertaining, and the romance of everyday traditions. It reminds us that beauty does not have to be reserved for extraordinary occasions.

In Her Studio is especially inspiring for anyone who loves making things. It offers a peek into the creative spaces of artists and makers and celebrates the very human desire to create.

And Daphne’s Diary is wonderfully whimsical and different. It feels like a little paper adventure, full of color, creativity, crafts, stationery, ideas, and unexpected details. It does not seem particularly interested in arguing with anyone, which is sometimes a very refreshing quality indeed.

None of these magazines is perfect, and we do not have to agree with every article or idea in every publication. But there is something appealing about media that makes room for beauty, creativity, curiosity, and the quieter pleasures of life.

The Kind of Media That Makes Us Want to Make Something

Perhaps one simple question can help us decide what deserves our attention:

What do we think about after spending time with it?

There is some media that might leave readers anxious.

Some leave readers comparing.

Some leave readers angry.

There is a lot of media that leaves women, mothers, and children feeling worse.

And then there are things that leave us wanting to make soup.

Or bake a cake.

Or rearrange the bookshelf.

Or call a friend.

Or go outside.

Or finally begin the creative project we have been thinking about for months.

Or simply notice that our own lives contain more goodness than we had realized.

That kind of inspiration feels different. It does not say, Your life is not enough. It says, Look at what can grow from the life you already have.

Choosing Media with the Same Care As Other Things We Allow In Our Homes

Many of us are thoughtful about what we bring into our homes.

We choose the foods we feed our families. We think about what our children watch. We select the books on our shelves. We decide which traditions we want to keep.

Perhaps our media deserves a little thought, too.

Not because we need to create a perfect bubble or avoid every difficult subject. There are certainly important things happening in the world, and there is value in being informed. But there is a difference between being informed and living in a constant state of agitation.

We can know what is happening in the world without allowing the loudest, most inflammatory voices to occupy every corner of our minds.

We can care deeply about serious things while still protecting room in our lives for beauty. We can be thoughtful without being consumed by arguments. We can be aware without becoming endlessly alarmed.

And we can remember that a quiet life is not an uninformed life. Sometimes it is simply a well-tended one.

There is a reason many of us find comfort in the changing seasons and the familiar rhythms of the year, the gradual return of autumn, the anticipation of Christmas, the fresh hope of Easter, and the ordinary Sundays that quietly come in between. A life does not have to be constantly dramatic to be meaningful. Sometimes the beauty is found in returning, remembering, celebrating, and beginning again.

The Beautiful Things Are Still There

Modern media often focuses on unpleasant extremes and making ordinary life seem small. But the truly beautiful things are still there. There are still apples in bowls and flowers in jars. There are still family recipes and favorite books.

There are still children building forts, people learning to paint, friends gathering for lunch, and families trying to make dinner while somebody asks where their other shoe is.

There are still homes filled with laughter, laundry, books, snacks, and people who are doing their best.

That life may not always trend. It may not inspire a dramatic headline. But it is a real life. And for many of us, it is a very good one.

Perhaps faith helps us see this, too: that God is not found only in the dramatic and extraordinary moments of life. There can be goodness in the ordinary moments, in a shared meal, a familiar prayer, the changing of the seasons, the laughter around a table, and the quiet work of caring for the people and places in our lives.

Perhaps that is the kind of media we need a little more of: media that does not constantly ask us to become someone else. Media that does not insist we must always be more dramatic and controversial.

Media that gives us a few good ideas, inspires us to try something new, and then gently sends us back to our own lives. Because maybe the goal is not to spend our days watching other people live. Maybe the goal is to gather a little inspiration, and then go live our own beautiful, ordinary lives.

And perhaps we can begin by choosing a little more of the good stuff!