Taste Life Blog

“I needed a time out. I couldn’t keep up. I was working every night until midnight. I took off Friday and didn’t even turn on the email stream until Monday.” Are you a victim of the time police?

Dawna Markova writes in “I Will Die an Unlived Life,” “I am stunned to discover now that I have been sitting in front of the west window doing nothing for forty five minutes. How long has it been since I really did absolutely nothing for three quarters of an hour? I looked around as if waiting for the Time Police to arrest me for being non-productive. All I have done is step into the darkness inside myself, into the silence, where I know the world is made of.”

It certainly takes courage to stop the chaos and focus on yourself. If you have too many commitments, you can’t possibly have energy or time for self- care. I used to have too many flower gardens. I got excited by buying the plants but ended up never having enough time to weed the flower gardens. When I lived in Eau Claire, Wisconsin I created several rock gardens. When my dad came to visit we would scour the countryside looking for the most perfect rocks and he would lug them back to the car. Eventually, when I looked at these rock gardens I saw work, effort and a feeling of overwhelm. I had more on my plate than I could take care of. I slowly let the gardens go. I never had the heart to tell my dad that I was tired of the rock gardens.  Life can be the same way. Overplanting, over-planning, over-committing and not having the time for self-care. Summer is the perfect time to get your time back.  How do you do that?

Get rid of guilt: Set limits on your commitments this summer. Set up some standards as to your commitments this summer like one night a week you will be busy.

Organize just enough: You like this one I bet. Organize enough so you have some structure but let go of that perfectionism organization that only leads to stressful overeating (ok ok, that is what I see in my line of work…stress and eating and dislike of your scale).

 Slow down: The time to think and savor your life is summer. When you find yourself rushing around, ask, “What am I hurrying towards?” “What am I racing off to?” The ‘Make 2012 Be The Best Summer of Your Club’ has begun.It’s not too late to join!

Here are some of the ways the clubbers are making this a memorable summer:

• At least one concert at the zoo
• Sleep on a sailboat
• Mediate every day
• Kayak with my friends
• Take a nap outdoors
• Sleep in once a week
• Farmers’ market every Saturday
• Have running club over
• Join a tennis league
• Do nothing once a week

It’s not too late to create your best summer; you only have one life to live, just imagine if it was one you loved.

 Read more on how to have the courage to be lazy this summer and “do nothing” to be your best.