The April Issue + The Importance of Home

As the world hunkers down to help contain the spread of COVID-19, many of us are employing social-distancing measures and working from home. Still others have been forced to stay home as the companies they work for temporarily shutter their doors to reduce public interactions: retail stores, gyms, restaurants and coffee shops. The home, always a retreat and a place of respite and calm, has taken on even more importance in these days of self-isolation.

Martha Stewart Living magazine, which has always been my favourite magazine, has proven itself, yet again, to be such a consistent source of comfort to me. The April issue, which is on newsstands now (although a subscription offers so much more value) is just what I needed on this first Monday of enforced public closures in the city where I live.

Its pages are filled with the perfect kinds of projects we can all do at home, from spring cleaning to Easter crafts. There are excellent recipes to try, too, if you can manage to source the ingredients in a calm and safe way at your grocery store. I'm eager to try the carrot-cake/humming-bird cake hybrid and all those delicious vegetarian dishes in the Everyday Food section. I know that I'll read the issue cover to cover, as I always do, and I'm sure it will help me appreciate the comforts of home even more.

April is also Earth Month, and the editors have put together a spectacular list of 50 things we can all do to minimize our footprint on the planet, from changing our eating habits to making our own cleaning products; from supporting local businesses and growers who adhere to eco-friendly practices to reducing single-use plastics in our homes and workplaces.

There is nothing quite like leafing through a copy of Martha Stewart Living with a cup of tea. It's a ritual I have cherished for almost three decades and it's a ritual that brings a more poignant level of comfort in these days of uncertainty. Happy reading!

APRIL ISSUE HIGHLIGHTS:

Favourite Good Thing: Using handlebar tape as a gripping device on brooms and brushes, page 30

Favourite Recipe: Hummingbird Carrot Cake, page 69

Favourite Find: Hop Tea , page 24

Favourite Article: "Living Legends" (the article about magnolias on page 96)