Thoughts ~ slowing down

Make days off count. Pamper yourself. Learn to do nothing. Then learn to do nothing without feeling guilt. Then learn to schedule time for doing nothing.

Listen to your body; it knows you best. There are times to override the urge to snooze, and there are times to skip the gym + sleep more. Learn the difference.

Self care is going easy on yourself. Self care is also pushing yourself to do that one thing you really don’t want to do but really need to do. Your future self will thank you.

Don’t drink coffee on the go. Sit down to drink it and savour the taste and watch the people passing you. They all have the same, rich tapestry of emotions and experiences that you have. Smile to yourself when you see the couple kissing on the bench. Chuckle at the children playing in the park. Wish the barista a nice day. Feed the pigeons in your lunch hour. Run out of milk and run through the rain to the shop, giggling hysterically as you go. Reminisce with friends but never stop looking forward. Be in this moment without rushing to the next one.

Red lights are just an opportunity to watch birds landing on power lines.

Jump over cracks in the pavement. Twirl as you walk. Jump in puddles and kick dead leaves.

Don’t hate your computer for going slow; you weren’t too sharp first thing this morning either.

Taste your food. Listen to your coworkers when they tell you about their weekend. Listen to yourself when you tell them about yours. Smell the cold breeze when it’s 7:30am and still dark and you’re scraping ice off your windscreen. What a bizarre world we’ve built for ourselves.

Love your body. Love your clothes. Dress how you would if no one was judging. Get your photos printed and put them on the wall.

Let the phone go to voicemail every now and again. Turn it off completely when you’re catching up with family or friends. Let people know you’re thinking of them. Climb a mountain just to scream in delight from the top. Strive for your best and no one else’s, and accept that you can’t achieve that every single day. Just because we live in a 24/7 world doesn’t mean you have to conform to the 24/7 lifestyle.