Hello beautiful, fabulous, fly people! It's been three wonderful weeks since my "taking a break" post and so much has happened in that short period of time.
Here's what I was up to during my time away:
- Started a workout regime. It only latest a week and a half.
- Drank a lot of tea (something I love doing!).
- Hung out with friends.
- Stared at the computer screen a lot. (Overwhelmed with the possibilities.)
- Cried. (Good cries.)
- Watched TV.
- Drank more tea.
- Read some of my neglected magazines.
- Stared at my inbox of unanswered emails and finally said, "I'm on break" and logged out.
- Made myself drink more water.
- Argued with a boy.
- Played Tetris on my Blackberry (I'm addicted).
- Stared at my computer screen some more.
- Drank more tea.
- Read The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success by Deepak Chopra (awesome by the way).
- Went through my spring/summer wardrobe. Blah!
- An excuse for a little shopping. Yayy!
- Did a lot of journaling.
- Finally picked up my sketchbook — once, to move it when I cleaned off my desk.
- Had drinks with my father and talked his ear off about love and relationships. (He loved this!)
- Talked my mother's ear off about love and relationships. (She told me to leave her alone. Ha!)
- Jotted notes and collected images for Fly.
- Bought Nicki Minaj's "Did it On 'Em" and Lil Wayne's "Right Above it" and played them both over and over.
- Wrote a loose/flexible five year plan.
- Started taking a Portuguese class, and finally got over the fact that I had to start at level one.
- Went to a nightclub where every girl rocked the same Kim Kardashian inspired look and realized that was totally not my scene. Had fun dancing though.
- Stopped drinking tea! (And then started again.)
When I took that time off I didn't expect much at all, just an opportunity to do whatever. I didn't expect any kind of enlightenment or profound revelations, but did in fact have both. I don't mean to sound like a self-help guru but I was able to clear my mind, re-energize and reconnect with my authentic self. With so much go, go, go and getting caught up in what I want to do for the future I was totally stripping myself of any opportunity to enjoy the here and now (AND enjoy the lovely people in my life).
So, in my mind I'm tusslin'
Back and forth ‘tween here and hustlin’
I don’t wanna time travel no mo
I wanna be here — Erykah Badu "Window Seat"
Sing it Erykah! Yes, no more time-traveling for me, and you too, if you find yourself getting stuck always looking forward. Enjoy small everyday moments. They all come together to make a happy fruitful life.
I'm going to spend more time helping my mother in her garden, eating with friends who make me laugh, writing in my journal and drinking tea (and wine), offering to help a friend in need, donating to organizations I respect and admire, laughing with my students (they are too funny), and just smiling.
All that to say, I feel rejuvenated and so very excited to be back. I hope you enjoy all the new posts to come!
P.S. Thank you for all your beautiful warm words of inspiration and encouragement. I appreciate the love and support. Thank you so much!
