Posted on 05/20/2020
It somehow happens every year, doesn't it? Winter gets longer and summer gets shorter. Now, don't bother me with the science of seasons or anything else: I know the truth. And if you're anything like me, you put a whole lotta pressure on those precious summer months. Starting in January, I scout out Memorial Day and hope beyond hope that it starts to feel like summertime by then. I barely have time to put away my patriotic paraphernalia before July 4 rolls around, and I wonder how it arrived so soon. As Labor Day and the start of the new school year looms ahead, I remember what I forgot to do. Amid the many, many to-do's on my list, I seem to always neglect these few. Slow down. Simplify. Stop scheduling every last minute of summer fun.
Slow Down, but How?
The Facebook events keep grabbing your attention, and friends and family keep calling, texting, e-mailing you with invites and ideas. Let them. At some point, we have to realize that not one other human being can force us to slow down. And no one except us can model a healthy, happy rhythm for our kids; we have to be those people. Let your phone go uncharged for a weekend, if you must. Completely unplug. Throw the to-do list (and honey-do list) out the window. Take down the clocks, and put away your watch. Whatever you need to do in order to stop feeling like a rat in a race? Do that thing. Then what? Whatever you really want to do. Read a book, bake a favorite dessert, hang out in the pool, just you and your tribe. You owe it to them and to yourself to have at least one slow and lazy summer day.
Simplify, Somehow
Even baby steps can feel like big ones, here. Take one thing off your plate, maybe just for summer, maybe forever. Perhaps you feel pressure to make homemade baked goods for every barbecue you attend. Scratch it, and buy some cookies instead. Or maybe you always feel like you need to invite the neighborhood whenever the pool is open. Reserve one evening per week for just your household. It's amazing how taking just one thing off your to-do list can help you breathe a little easier. Did you catch a whiff of that? It's a tiny glimpse of the simple, carefree summer you've been wanting.
Stop Scheduling - for Real!
If you're like me, you really don't want a month of nothing on the calendar. But how about an evening each week or a weekend each month? When we stop feeling the pressure to schedule every minute, we can take the time to actually enjoy the activities and events we do choose to attend. Did you catch that really important word back there? Yes, I said "choose." None of us should feel as if our life has been chosen for us. We really do get to choose. So stop the people-pleasing and fear of missing out, and choose the things that best fit your family, free to leave the rest for those that actually like doing them.
I see that wistful look on your face. "If only I could," you're thinking, right? Well, you can. Whether you choose to do it or not, that's up to you. But the choice is truly yours. Own it. Do it. And don't complain to anyone else about it if you make the choice you'll regret once Labor Day rolls around, this year.
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