Personally, I had to shift my WFP a little and do parts of the craft yesterday and then finish it today.
Breaking it into two parts was actually a space-making move for me because I was tired yesterday and didn’t have the focus I needed to do the more detailed parts of the project.
If I had pushed myself to keep going, it wouldn’t have felt like I was creating space, I would have felt rushed and cranky.
And, obviously, those are not the feelings I was going for!
Anyway, I hope your WFP worked out/is working out the way you need/needed it to and that you were kind to yourself in the process.
Actually, I would like you to be kind to yourself in every process but that, in itself, is something that takes a lot of practice!
Speaking of processes and practice, our movement practice for today is a 10 Minute Full Body Pilates Workout with Jessica Valent.
Remember that the key here is to take a few minutes for movement – you can adapt her movements, just do a few, or you can do something else entirely.
You are the boss of you!
Still image description shows the instructor outside on a sunny day, lying on a blue mat in a grassy field surrounded by trees. She is in exercise clothes and she is extending one leg along the ground while the other one is extended toward the sky and she is holding onto the calf of her raised leg. Her face is toward the camera and she’s smiling.
Today, I’d like to remind you that little spaces are good.
Sometimes, I write off taking little breaks because I imagine that, if I just keep puttering along, a bigger space will open up and I will be able to REALLY relax.
And sure, that works out sometimes but mostly I find that if I don’t take those little breaks, if I don’t enjoy those little spaces in my schedule, I am too tired to enjoy the big ones that do come along.
So, my space making friends, please, please, please, stop and chat with your friend, write in your journal, do a couple of stretches, savour your cup of tea or coffee, do a two minute drawing.
Those small spaces are good for you.
Yes, it’s still important to seek bigger spaces, longer rest, and more fun, but let’s not dismiss the restorative power of those little spaces.
Please do what you can to take good care of yourself by taking those breaks whenever you find (or make!) them.
Now, onto your Weekend Fun Plan.
I don’t know whether you planned your Weekend Fun for yesterday, today, or tomorrow, but I hope it goes off without a hitch and you have a delightful time.
BUT
What if you get to your time for Weekend Fun and you can’t actually do the thing?
May you’re sick or your kid needs you or you couldn’t get the thing you needed to make it work.
First, let me say that I’m sorry it didn’t work and that it is ok for you to be grumpy about it.
Second, once your initial frustration eases a little, you could try a modified version of your Weekend Fun and see how it feels.
Finally, if your Weekend Fun Plan cannot happen this weekend, please reschedule it.
Yes, I do mean reschedule.
Please don’t just abandon it or put it off until you get around to it.
Pick a different time and plan to do it then.*
I promise it will feel much different than hoping you’ll get to it at some point.
A changed plan is way better than an abandoned one.
And whether you get your Weekend Fun or whether you have to change or reschedule it, I wish you ease and self-kindness in the process.
Now, onto today’s smal spaces –
For our movement practice today, here’s Yes2Next with a Seated Core Workout.
Still image: A senior mother and her middle aged daughter seated in chairs with their legs extended forward. The mother has her arms crossed flat to her chest, the daughter has her arms extended. There is a light coloured rug beneath their chairs.
And here’s our mindfulness practice for today – Minute Meditation to Drop Into the Present Moment from Mindful Moments with Katie.
Still image description: a cartoon depiction of a person sitting cross-legged on a couch with their arms extended overhead. On the left side of the image is an orange blob with the title of the video on it in white. There is a blue background in the image.
Have fun out there! 💚🌟💚
*and if that time doesn’t work, re-reschedule! Your fun is worth the effort.
I hope today provides you with a least a little of the Friday! feeling that kids get after a week of school – a sense of change, a little feeling of a break from your routine.
And I hope that your Weekend Fun Plan is going well and that you are looking forward to that fun. 🙂
Your small step for your WFP for today is: gather your stuff.
What do you need in order to do the thing you want to do?
Do you need supplies? A cozy blanket? A notebook? Snacks? Crayons? A Bluetooth speaker?
Once you figure out the things you need, gather them together and put them near where you will use them.
The goal here is to make it even easier for you to follow through on your WFP.
After all, I don’t want you to sit down to colour tomorrow and discover that you can’t find your gold crayon. That could put your whole plan in jeopardy!
So, as much as possible, take care of tomorrow you today and get your stuff in place for your WFP.
Now, on to today’s space-making!
Ok, full disclosure : it’s rainy and windy here in Newfoundland this morning and my power went out an hour ago. I suspect those factors may have influenced my decision to choose a 5 Minute Warm Up Routine video from Fit by Mik and a Mindful Tea Drinking Practice meditation from Little Light Meditations for our practices today.
But no matter why I chose them, these practices can be a great way to create a little space for yourself in your schedule today.
And if these don’t appeal, please choose some other way to make a little space for yourself.
Wishing you ease, today and always. 💚
Still image: on the left side of the image is the title of the video which is covering a plant which is sitting on the floor in the instructor’s studio space. The instructor is doing a bending side stretch on the right hand side of the image.
Still image description: a photo of tea on a glass cup sits on a table in the light cast from a nearby window. The title of the video is on the upper left.
PS – My power came back on just as I finished writing this. Yay!
Ok, so I really considered starting this post with ‘Hey Astronauts!’ (you know, because we’re all so interested in space?) but then I changed my mind but then I cracked myself up imaging people either shaking their heads in a ‘Christine gonna Christine’ kind of way or rolling their eyes in a ‘There she goes again!’ kind of way so I decided to reference the idea without actually doing it.
Sort of.
ANYWAY! Let’s carry on.
I hope that you are doing ok with your space-making plans but that you aren’t finding the process too much of a hassle.
After all, I’m not aiming to just add more stuff to your to do list – I’m really hoping to help you find a little ease and a little more room for yourself.
If my suggestions ever feel like more hassle than they are worth please DO SOMETHING ELSE INSTEAD. You know yourself and you know what you need, please just be kind to yourself in the process.
Did you get a chance to spend a few moments imagining doing the fun thing you have planned for the weekend? Either way, take another go and enjoying the anticipation today. 🙂
And to help ensure that the Weekend Fun Plan goes well, your small task for today is to figure out what support you need to make the WFP work. Do you need to turn off your phone notifications? Do you need someone to watch your kids? Do you need to create quiet? Do you need company? Do you need accountability?* Do you need to literally clear a space for this fun thing to happen?**
Do whatever you can now to help get those supports in place for your Weekend Fun Plan in advance. I don’t know about you but if I have to organize stuff like this right before I start my WFP, it might feel like way too much hassle. I don’t want that!
So, with that part of our WFP in place, let’s return our thoughts to Thursday, December 5.
For our movement practice today, we are visiting Ask Dr Jo for a Chair Yoga practice. I really like Dr Jo’s signature goofy straightforwardness and I hope you do, too.
Still image: Large text reading Chair Yoga is in white on the left side of the image and Dr Jo is seated on a black chair on the right. She is in profile, facing to the left, and she is wearing a green tshirt and black patterned leggings. Her hands are on her hips.
And this friendly cartoon mediation from Headspace is all about self-care and I really like the message. It fits right in with the idea of making space for yourself – what an odd coincidence that I just happened to pick this, hey? (I really wish you could hear me saying that in a dry tone before I smirk. It’s sarcastic but not in an unfriendly way.)
Still image description: Text reading ‘Meditation for Self-Care’ is in the upper left. and there is a yellow circle with a happy, orange, cartoon square with its eyes closed in the bottom right. The background is dark blue and there are a variety of small shapes in lighter blue scattered around the happy square.
So, my friends, I wish you luck with your space making today and I hope you have some delightful snacks and some good conversations.
And, of course, I am wishing you ease today and every day.
*Yes, it seems silly to need accountability for a plan for fun but sometimes it’s tricky to take that time for fun and asking someone else to make sure we did it can make all the difference.
** For example: My fun thing is making a small gift for someone. In order to actually do that, I’ll need to set up a folding table with a lamp on it so other people’s activities are not an obstacle to my plan. Have a look at the literal space that you plan to use and make sure that you have enough room and that anything annoying or distracting can be moved or covered so you can ignore it.
I hope you can take a few deep breaths and give yourself a little break today.
AND I hope you can take a few minutes to add to your Weekend Fun Plan.
Now that you have selected a small fun thing and picked a time that you are likely to be able to do that small fun thing, I’d like you to make a list of the things you need in order to make that fun small thing happen.
If you plan to have hot chocolate on your front porch, you’ll need hot chocolate, a mug, and probably some warm clothes. (and a front porch, I guess, but hopefully you already have that because building one will be fairly time consuming!)
If you plan to make some cookies, you’ll need ingredients.
If you plan to read a novel, you’ll need to pick one out.
You get the idea.
The process of making the list will probably reveal two things 1) whether your fun idea still feels fun* 2) whether your Weekend Fun Plan is small enough for you to actually do. **
Also, if you can, take a few moments to imagine yourself actually doing your Weekend Fun Plan and think about how you will feel in the process – might as well have a little anticipatory enjoyment, right?
Okay, with your future fun underway, let’s make a little space for our today selves with these videos (or with space-making activities of your own choosing, of course.)
First, we have a Full Body Stretch from Yoga with Adriene for you to try and then we have a Three Minute Guided Meditation from Calm Sage.
And, as always, I wish you ease.
Enjoy!
Still image description: a photo of Adriene doing a seated twist on a yoga mat in her studio and smiling at the camera. White text surrounding her reads ‘FULL BODY STRETCH’
Still image shows early morning sun shining through evergreen trees onto still water and a person sitting on a deck with their arms above their head and their hands meeting in prayer position.Text overlaid on the photo reads ‘3 MINUTE Guided Meditation.‘
*Sometimes we get caught up in something we feel *should* be fun but once we take a closer look we realize that it doesn’t actually appeal to us. If this happens to you, it’s totally ok to pick a whole different small fun thing. For example – Once upon a time, I would have thought that making fancy decorated Xmas cookies sounded like fun but I have since learned that I not only hate rolling out and cutting cookies but I find detailed decorating to be tedious. Once I figured that out, I let go of the idea of doing that sort of thing. Learn from my frustration, my friends! Choose something that is ACTUALLY fun for you.
**Try not to make things too complicated – you are more likely to be able to accomplish something that is fairly low-key.
How have you been doing with the plan to make some space for yourself over the past two days?
Don’t worry if it has been tricky to find wiggle room – we can just keep practicing. 🙂
Before we get into the exercise and meditation suggestions for today, let’s do another small step on the Weekend Fun Plan.
Yesterday, you picked some small, fun thing that you wanted to do on the weekend.
(You didn’t get a chance to pick something? Well, I’ve got some good news for you – this is not a test and it is not a timed exercise. You can pick something now!)
So, once you have your fun thing picked out, let’s figure out a time when you are most likely to be able to do it.
What is your time like on the weekend? Do you have scheduled activities? Do you have to work around other people and/or other people’s activities? Is your activity time-based? (For example: Making yourself a fancy lunch will usually have to happen at lunch time and walking around to look at holiday lights will usually be more fun after dark.) What kind of energy will you need for your fun thing? (For example: You can journal for a few minutes before bed but that’s not an ideal time to do an intense workout.)
You don’t have to address every possible aspect here, just get a rough idea of the best timing for your fun and make note of it on your calendar/schedule/post-it note/mental map.
Look at us taking care of ourselves in advance! Go Team Us!
Meanwhile, let’s also take care of ourselves today.
Please remember that I am not insisting that you must do these videos – they are just a suggestion to save you the hassle of trying to find videos for yourselves. Please do whatever *you* want to do that will help your day feel a bit more spacious.
First up, we have a video from MadFit called ‘5 MIN MIDDAY ENERGY BOOST (A workout for when you feel like taking a nap)‘ Normally, my strongly pro-nap stance would be against anything that prevents you from taking a nap but I grudgingly admit that naps are not *always* the solution and sometimes some movement can help you feel almost as good as a nap.
still image from the video shows the instructor in exercise clothes with one hand on her hip and one arm stretched overhead, text next to her reads 5 MIN Energy Boost
And our meditation suggestion for today is ‘5 Minute Meditation Music to Focus Your Mind’ from 5 Minutes By Great Meditation. Lately, I have especially enjoyed meditation tracks that are just music and I really liked this one today.
still image from the video shows a person sitting back-on the camera facing the sun rising over a wooded hill in the distance. The person is cross-legged with their forearms resting on the knees and their index fingers are touching their thumbs on each hand, forming a circle. The grass in front of them and the trees to the sides are slightly lit by the sun.
No matter how much (or how little) space you make for yourself today, I wish you ease and some peace of mind.
Your well-being is at least as important as anything else on your list and you deserve your own attention.
It’s December 1st and we’re back with the another edition of Making Space, a series of (mostly) short posts designed to encourage you to make a little space for yourself this month.
No matter what you celebrate (or don’t celebrate!), December is one of those months of ambient stress and busy-ness. There are so many posts and articles full of lists and ideas about how to do more, more, more, and so much discussion of finishing things before the end of the year, or getting ‘the most’ out of the rest of 2024, that it is enough to make your head spin.
Now, I am NOT pretending that you aren’t busy.
And I am not going to be doing any vaguely condescending posts about how if you *just* change your attitude then all the hecticness will just melt away.
Instead, I am going to acknowledge that we all have a lot going on at this point in the year AND I am going to invite you to make a little space for yourself in your days.
Each day, I will post a short exercise/physical activity video and a short meditation/mindfulness video that you can do if you WANT to.
If the videos I post don’t appeal to you, I hope that you will still create some space for yourself and pick something *YOU* like to do.
(Taking a nap, texting a friend, drinking a very slow cup of tea, lying on the floor staring at the ceiling – those all count as making space.)
Giving yourself that space is worthwhile and important, even if you have to ditch something else from your to do list.
So, with all of that said, let’s start on the right foot (ha!) with this short video ‘Foot Stretch for Healthy Feet‘ from Yoga with Bird.
A YouTube video of foot yoga – the still image shows a woman sitting on a yoga mat with her legs crossed and she is massaging her left foot with both hands.
And here’s 1 minute of drawing meditation/mindfulness from Tamara Michael. If you don’t have a pen and paper handy, you could draw with your finger or just breath in and out along with her drawing.
A YouTube video of a drawing meditation that shows a person’s hands drawing lines and dots on a white coil-bound sketchpad. They draw a squiggly line downward for breathing in and a series of dots next to that line for breathing out.
I hope you are able to make the space you need in your day.
It’s nothing as bold as Cate’s solo cycling adventures, but I’m having fun. I brought my Brompton to Toronto for a visit with my son. He had to work, so I am exploring a bit of the city.
I started out by taking it for a ride around Mount Pleasant Cemetery because I knew it would be a safe mostly car-free spot. I ignored all the signs warning cyclists not to speed because I was too busy stopping to look at monuments and Google the more interesting ones.
The next day, I tried out the bike share service in order to ride to Cherry Beach, a destination I had wanted to visit last year; I was thwarted then by a week of unrelenting rain. As a cycling advocate, I really wanted to see what was possible, what was scary, and what was brilliant in a different city.
Aside from walking around my son’s neighbourhood, my experience of Toronto dates back well over 20 years. At that time, I knew a car-clogged section of Scarborough and had paid occasional visits to the downtown. My recollection of busy downtown streets was that they were not at all car friendly, although a trip to the Royal Ontario Museum a couple of years ago showed that things had changed: cycling was was possible (and possibly even pleasant).
The first thing I noticed when I picked up an e-bike at a nearby station was how many bike parking options there were. Every corner had racks, and most of the racks would be useable by non-standard cargo bikes or bikes with trailers or baskets, too. That’s key if you want people to ride: they need to feel confident that their bikes won’t be stolen.
The very first instruction was to ride down Yonge Street – yikes! Well, yikes until I realized that there was a separated bike path protected by a pin curbs with bollards or flexiposts. It was great! From there I worked my way to The Beaches area, mostly using lanes that were physically separated from cars. In 10.5 km of travel, I came across only one vehicle parked in a bike lane, and one spot of construction where I briefly needed to share the road with cars (but it had good signage and the drivers gave me plenty of space, as they did whenever I was at an intersection or had only painted lines for protection). Even in quite industrial areas there were some lovely paths.
A Bike share station; a section of bike lane along Yonge Street; a quiet bike path surrounded by bushes. Just past the bushes were busy roads with lots of construction vehicles.
Google Maps was not my friend, as it took me along Lakeshore Drive to Woodbine Beach instead of to Cherry Beach, but I’m not mad about that. Woodbine Beach turned out to be gorgeous and I had a lovely swim.
Diane, still wet from her swim, with Lake Ontario in the background.
I planned my ride home to take me past the store that was the main setting for Kim’s Convenience, a popular Canadian TV show. It meant more busy downtown streets, a few of which had no bike lanes, but it felt no worse than downtown Ottawa, and most of it felt considerably better.
Kim’s Convenience, a variety store that was the setting for the TV show of the same name. Yes, I’m a Canadian content nerd.
The ride home took me up Sherbourne, which was a lovely mix of bike lanes that were separated by being at level with the sidewalk, or had pin curbs or speed bumps topped with either bollards or flexiposts to keep cars out of the lane. I paralleled a bus most of the way; it was nice to have my own lane so I didn’t have to stop behind it all the time, and it was easy to avoid riders getting on and off at the stops.
Google Maps tried to kill me right at the end of my ride: first directing me down a one-way steep hill to merge into busy traffic so I could turn left across multiple lanes less than half a block away. That was a big old nope so I walked my bike back up the hill on the sidewalk, and headed into Rosedale looking for an alternate route.
The second attempt was when it took me right past the park where I was pretty sure I could find a bike share stand, and down a little path that led to a steep flight of stairs to the bottom of a ravine. Also nope! I got myself back to the park, off-loaded the bike and walked home in time for a shower and quick nap before walking to dinner.
Total count for the day: 33+ km cycling, 10.5 km walking and a 1 km swim.
Day 3, my final day of this holiday, was dedicated to exploring trails along the Don River. Growing up, the Don had a reputation as a terribly polluted place, and the Don Valley Parkway was considered well-named because of the stop-and-go traffic. The reality today is quite different.
The day started off badly as I believed both Google and the Toronto trails map, and was too stubborn to go back up a steep hill once I discovered the trail was closed. Instead, I half carried my bike along a narrow dirt path that was sometimes muddy, sometimes under water, and sometimes blocked with roots or fallen trees. Something that should have taken 12 minutes took an hour.
A narrow rough path beside a stream in a wooded area.
But after that, I had a delightful ride down to the Brickworks park and then north to the botanical gardens and then along another trail that took me into Don Mills. At that point, I was faced with very busy roads and no bike lanes, so decided to head home. Total distance for the day was just shy of 33 km.
I’m glad I brought my little Brompton on this trip, but also glad I had the option of the bike share. Both turned out to be really handy for exploring the city.
Next stop: points west to visit friends and hopefully use the Brompton some more.
I grew up with the romantic trope of the adventurous, rangey 20-something backpacker who freely wanders the world for months at a time. I stayed home for grad school in my twenties: the only backpack I carried was with my library books or my groceries. Then, last year at 44, I bought my first travel backpack (a Tortuga 35L), and so far I’ve done two short overseas trips with it (and smaller local trips).
What I lack in experience with worldly backpacking I make up for by watching others. These small midlife backpacking ideas gained learned from my more well-travelled midlife friends have made this style of travel kind and supportive for me. I acknowledge I use them as a privileged, white English-speaking woman travelling to urban and semi-urban places as a foreigner and a guest.
My friend Marnie and her 40L pack, while we were about to leave our guest house in Istanbul.
Lightening the load
My first lessons of midlife backpacking were: pack light (if you wish to avoid luggage checks on planes) and be ready to carry what you pack.
Many travel backpacks today come with a few different clips—across the chest and across the stomach—to distribute the weight of the pack. On my recent trip I left my waist clips at home to reduce overall pack weight; however, I regretted it, as without them the full weight of the pack meant my shoulders got tired faster.
In my pre-travel preparation I saw for sale many funky and clever but bulky and expensive smaller bags and bottles for stuff within the pack. My more experienced travel buds showed me that ziploc bags and plastic water bottles were much lighter, had many different uses, and could be re-used multiple times.
Medicines and their containers
Last time I travelled abroad I got a cold, and it was miserable without the medicines I use. So I was not going to leave them at home again
On my recent trip I kept with me at all times a small key ring capsule with emergency over-the-counter meds, and in my pack I had a larger fold up storage pill container with enough for the whole trip. Some of my friends even travel with (doctor-prescribed) antibiotics and medicines for UTIs, just in case of an emergency.
It may be extra planning and cost, but it is worthwhile to me to bring a range of medicines that can make me feel better if I feel unwell, even if it is unlikely I will get sick.
A large and small pill holder
Foot care and hydration
This year I followed my friend Marnie’s lead and took extra care of my feet: I brought moisture-wicking hiking socks, KT blister prevention tape, moleskin, wound cleaning wipes, waterproof bandages, and foot cream for quick at-night foot massages. When I scraped my foot raw on the submerged rocks while swimming at the beach in Greece, I was able to care for my feet the days following.
As well, I brought a water bladder and water purification tablets. I used them first as a water station in the places we stayed; later I took them along on hikes in 37 degree Celsius weather. I also brought electrolyte tablets, using half of one at a time. As a result, I was never dehydrated and I felt really good at the end of the day. I didn’t need expensive water bottle purchases in remote locations, and it kept my hands free.
Elan at the Saklikent Gorge, Turkey, wearing a bucket hat, sunglasses, shorts, and a backpack with a bladder and hose for hydration.
Apps and digital tools
My friends showed me how to up my mobile game when traveling internationally.
Our trip planner, Kim, checks not only directions but also the Google satellite and street views of the places she is going. That way, she can marry written or oral instructions with visible paths and landmarks to confirm wayfinding.
Upon Kimi’s recommendation, I used the free version of the DeepL app for real time written and audio language translations. We used the app to chat with some local women on the train as we played cards, and it was a great way to pass the time and make new friends.
After I accidentally gave the wrong amount and currency to a store vendor, a Sheila suggested her free version of Units Plus, a currency exchange app that converts two currencies quickly. This app was helpful in places with multiple currencies to avoid overpaying.
I used to travel with print books, and I appreciate the serendipity of leaving or finding good books where backpackers stay. However, this time I used Apple Books for a novel, a library travel audio book, and podcasts to pass the time while traveling.
Every app saved pack weight and made the trip a little safer, easier, and morefun.
Give myself and others grace
My midlife-friendly learning on my recent backpacking trip: do what I need to be a little easier on myself and others. Stop and take the pack off. Invest in quick-dry underwear (that really does dry super quick on the line). Take a break for another coffee before I get tired and grumpy later in the day.
Always try to be patient and kind with others, especially those in the travel service industry. Take the time to ask a hotel owner about their family or a server about what they would recommend ordering on the menu.
I learned to embrace the fact I don’t have anything to prove on my backpack travels. Instead, I could exercise the self-understanding that I have acquired by midlife (compared to my much less self-aware self in my 20s). Being a midlife backpacker has helped me to be not only kinder to myself as a traveller but also to the locals who shoulder many burdens put upon them by travellers (most of which I do not ever see).
Elan’s legs and feet over a concrete walkway on our way to Fethiye, Turkey. We stopped for a break, so I used my pack to elevate my legs and give my feet a much-needed rest!
What small ideas or tips (for backpacking or otherwise) have you learned that make your travel journeys a little easier for you in midlife?
Sam invited me years ago to guest blog on FIFI, and back then as someone in her late 30s I’d wondered how my musings would fit as a not-quite-yet “midlife” feminist. Aside from her forward thinking (as of course we all grow into middle age), while planning for holiday travel recently I’d realized that perhaps I had finally made it to mid-life. Why? Because I was, for the first time, packing two of things.
I like to exercise to music, but what if my lightning charge cable breaks? Solution: Bring two. What if the busted sneakers I usually bring don’t have treads for the hike I want to do? Answer: Bring a second pair. What if the luggage with my swimming towel doesn’t arrive? Remedy: pack my microfibre travel towel (when I know towels will be available). What if I run out of face 60 SPF while I’m out in the sun. Yes: Pack a second bottle.
A few years ago I blogged about treetop adventures and my reflections on realizations about value of preventative injury measures and safety thinking. Admittedly, for most of my life I have never had a “safety first” attitude (sorry mom). Due to youth, inexperience, and limited financial means I’ve usually winged it with what I had, or I just went without.
These days, in contrast, I’ve noticed my brain has been thinking ahead: planning back ups and paying more attention to minimizing risk. Is it because I can financially afford doubles of stuff, I’ve become wiser in my older age, or I’ve eventually learned from my mistakes?
It’s probably a combination. It’s pretty neat, this sudden impulse to be more prepared, because I know as I grow older I know I can less afford to be injured, and the added preparation measures give me more piece of mind (even with slightly heavier luggage).
My goal is not to reinforce stereotype about middle age. I can see how these “solutions” tend towards comfort, even excess. And I am sure there are plenty of free spirits who are reading this and, out of necessity or confidence, connect with very little of it. I celebrate you!
But today, I recognize it’s a privilege to be able to bring two of what I might (or might not) need for my holiday fitness activities, and I am appreciating that, for probably the first time, I am caring for myself in this new way.
So, as I move steadily into the middle of my midlife, I find myself twice grateful for such abundance. 💜
