You know that saying, “Do as I say, not as I do”?
I have a feeling I can apply it to my post lockdown behaviour and myself. I don’t like to admit it but some of my seriously good intentions have been wavering as life has freed up. When I started writing these diaries there were so many small (and big) elements I wanted to focus on. In the main part, I have, but I am ever conscious it is easy to slip.
A slow tumble is a slippery slope.
You know the drill.
So easy to miss the exercise and indulge here and there.
A bit here and a bit there – all well and good – as long as it is here and there. The promise of balance is always my greatest challenge. I must find balance boring because it’s not my strength.
Tune in to Netflix and forget to read? Honestly, how many series can I watch before they all start blending into one? Do we ever remember the plot lines of these supposedly fabulous shows?
Still open for recommendations though – see what I mean? I need to de-charge the iPad and turn the pages :) I started out so strong with my reading and audiobooks – I don’t want that to change. It is one facet of lockdown I really enjoyed.
What about walking every day?
Did you commit to that one? I did and I have become a little flaky there. I promised myself I would walk despite the rain or any other unfriendly weather – the weather wasn’t the point, marching out the steps is.
*Note to Self.
And what about the revelations?
The thinking deeper, harder and longer about what we do and how we do it. I am trying to maintain my chosen approaches and I want to make sure I do but I can see it’s very simple for them to be relegated to the backburner as daily life kicks back in.
It’s so much easier to be resolute when our time is our own.
I forgot to mention the cooking crush.
Okay, I do not want to let this newly found fun slide. Fewer restaurants and fewer takeaways, symptoms of the full-on urban life, are conveniences I’d prefer to avoid – delicious and necessary from time to time but not all of the time. It’s such an easy one to fall into with time constraints.
Isn’t it all about making our time suit work for us?
The important words being “our’ and “us”. Sometimes I forget my time is actually mine and does not belong to anybody else. It’s for me to manage, divide and decide and if my choices are poor, that’s on me. Time and how we spend it not only needs management but also direction. If it doesn’t work for “us” then we aren’t spending our time wisely. These bright spark ideas aren’t beneficial if we don’t follow our own leads.
Writing it down helps. xv
And a big P.S
Thinking about this “slippery slope” and making sure I don’t tumble has had me looking for the triggers to take me off course. Okay, there is one huge one for me and it is tiredness.
When I am tired I want to slump, I want to eat all and everything and I want to lounge; all my greatest intentions belong to somebody else. For me, tiredness comes with the lack of quality of sleep and over the last few days, I have slept badly. The more exhausted I have felt the easier it is for my undesirable habits to take the lead.
**Big Note To Self:
Sleep better, deeper, longer and work on that and hopefully, the rest will take care of itself.
image, photographer tim walker
