recalibrating time
… Time flows carrying us forward through days, weeks, months, and seasons. As I grow older and my life's purpose becomes clearer, time seems to hasten its pace. In truth, time is accelerating; the Earth rotates faster, altering our perception of days, seasons, and years.
September 5, 2023
Hello, Friends!
I hope you're enjoying and savoring moments of ease as we transition into a new season.
Time flows carrying us forward through days, weeks, months, and seasons. As I grow older and my life's purpose becomes clearer, time seems to hasten its pace. In truth, time is accelerating; the Earth rotates faster, altering our perception of days, seasons, and years.
I've been contemplating how my approach to rest rejuvenates me, enabling me to serve those dear to me and pursue my passions. When my rest practice empowers my perseverance, it becomes truly transformative and radical. One aspect of radical rest, as I see it, involves reevaluating my relationship with time. I've been operating as if time remains constant, but lately all my rest, self-care, and gratitude practices have pushed me toward burnout.
My current focus revolves around assessing how I gauge productivity and success to align with the shifting rhythms of time in my body. Perhaps my to-do list should feature four items instead of six. Maybe a task that used to take me two weeks should now be allowed three. Perhaps rest should extend beyond mere pauses and sleep, with my breath serving as a soothing balm. I can redefine time in terms of memories, milestones, and my connection to the sun and moon. I can incorporate gratitude more, allowing myself to acknowledge fuller, brighter days.
How can I schedule my day? Perhaps my movement practices can become more spacious and intentional.
I've been dwelling on the idea of impermanence lately—where does my attachment to the fear of death and endings linger? Is there clinging to life that is hindering risk, progress and fun?
Am I truly aligned with notions of success and productivity that resonate with my inner self?
Time, though a useful metric, is a construct. We are time. We can bring this realization into our self-reflection, affirming our power to shape our timelines. We can redefine success, productivity, and rest as values that support us, rather than ideals imposed upon us by the relentless pace of hustle and capitalism, which ultimately leave us exhausted.
What does recalibrating your relationship with time entail in practice? How do you define and measure your personal success and happiness? What space can you create when you let your own judgments guide your timeline?
