Let August Breathe
,
I just got home from a two-week road trip, and as wonderful as it was to get away, visit family, and see some beautiful countryside, real life was patiently waiting for me when I returned.
I have work to catch up on, a home repair demanding attention (water leaks wreak so much destruction), and all the usual responsibilities of life. Add August heat and humidity, and even my energy feels a little wilted.
Maybe you can relate.
August is an interesting month. Summer isn't quite over, but fall is already knocking. Kids are heading back to school. Work is picking up. Calendars are filling. And somewhere in the back of our minds, we're already thinking about everything we need to accomplish before the end of the year.
Did you know? There are only 132 days until Christmas.
How's that for creating a little unnecessary urgency?
But what if we didn't rush into it? What if we let August breathe?
I'm not suggesting we ignore the work in front of us. I'm certainly not ignoring mine. But there's a difference between taking care of what needs our attention and creating urgency around everything else.
Not everything has to happen right now.
For these last few weeks of August, I'm choosing a little more space. I'm catching up without trying to catch up on everything. I'm handling what's important and letting some other things wait.
Right now, that means fixing the floor and figuring out how to tie carpet into linoleum so the house budget doesn't get eaten up by new flooring. It's not glamorous, but it's taking time, attention, and more mental energy than I would like to give it.
And that's life, isn't it?
Sometimes the thing draining your energy isn't a major crisis. It's the repair, the appointment, the school schedule, the work problem, or the decision that keeps following you around in the back of your mind.
Alignment doesn't mean those things disappear. It means recognizing what this season requires, giving it the attention it deserves, and not demanding that you somehow do everything else at full speed too.
Did I mention? Breathe.
I'm also thinking about how I want to enter the next season-not just what I want to accomplish in it. Maybe that's a question worth considering for yourself:
How do you want to feel as you enter the fall?
Clear? Energized? Focused? Present?
Perhaps the best thing you can do right now isn't to add something to your list. Maybe it's creating enough room to hear what actually deserves your time and energy next.
This will be my only Aligned newsletter in August. I'm giving myself permission to leave a little white space on the calendar and practice the alignment I talk about here.
I hope you'll give yourself permission to do the same.
Enjoy what's left of summer. Take care of what matters. Let a few things wait.
And breathe.
We'll pick things back up in September. Until then, enjoy the breathing room.
