Progress

Our first holiday season up north was difficult. It was our first time without any family or church community around us. It was restful and quiet, but also lonely.

Our second holiday season was better. We had adjusted to the quiet, even looked forward to it. And we were busy with a visit from LK's mom. It was good to have family around, but we wished they could all visit. It started us in realizing that we want to have people we love visit us. Someday we hope to be in a place where we are close enough to host holiday dinners.

This holiday season has been absolutely blissful- not perfect- but really, really good.

We have been very relaxed, which we all needed a lot after a super-intense fall at school. Those of us who are physically able to, slept in. We all stayed in our jammies until we felt like getting dressed. We read if we felt like it, played if we felt like it, watched tv if we felt like it, went outside if we felt like it. We treated outselves to little things that we usually denoy ourselves in daily life. We didn't do what we ought to do, but what we wanted to do (most of the time). It feels so decadent! And it has made us very refreshed.

I have not worn my watch since the last day of school. Time has become unimportant in determining what gets done. I highly recommend it for when you need to completely recharge.

I am not sure what is at the root of this wonderful holiday. It could be the fact that we were too exhausted to be uptight. Perhaps it was just necessary. I hope that at least part of it is due to some growth - I hope that LK and I are learning to be able to let go of attempting to control our world and be everything that everyone needs from us sometimes.

I hope that I can learn to do it more often, because I feel better emotionally than I have felt in years. I feel ten years younger, well maybe five.

However, physically is another matter. I also spent too much time sitting on the couch or floor, too much time eating unhealthy treats, and not enough time outside moving myself. So, it is time to get out cold weather running gear and learn to run in winter conditions. Because I really want to enjoy both the emotional health and physical health at the same time.

Now I just need to figure out how to maintain this amazing sense of well-being through the daily bustle of work...