I recently saw an ad for a retreat for female doctors that sounded just perfect.
Workshops that address work-life balance (or integration).
Parenting workshops.
Boundary exercises.
Morning yoga.
Good food.
Coffee.
Scenic location.
You get the idea. All the good stuff and more!
But I don’t plan to go.
I have the time to go.
I’m sure the content will be great.
I love personal development!
I enjoy talking about my feelings with like-minded people.
But, I’m not going because I know that the short immersive experience would only be a brief break from the real work of changing that I’m already doing every day. In that respect, the retreat would almost be a distraction.
After all, it’s the daily work that you need to make beautiful if you’re going to radically enjoy your life.
Life is not meant to be “retreated from” now and again.
It matters how you live your life each day.
Your daily life can be what you love to experience every day.
I enjoy my life because I realize that the small pleasures and the creative work of my daily routines are forms of wealth for me.
The pleasures are simple. They are within my control.
My day looks like this:
8 hours of restful sleep
Skin care routine and face yoga
Balance on one leg x 2
20 minutes of meditation
10 minutes of journalling
Morning routine with my kids while we listen to music from the Hobbit
Bike ride to school
Coffee
Exercise (sometimes while I learn, sometimes to a fun show)
Creative work for 3 hours
Lunch with 5 colours of produce
Creative work for 3 more hours
Pick up the kids from school
Make and enjoy dinner with them
Night routine
Journal for 10 minutes
Storytime
5 deep breaths
One high five in the shower
A great book of my own to read
No fancy retreat can compete with what I have every day!
Your day will look different from mine, but it can be just as simple and beautiful.
Question: “just like chess players see the beauty in their game, can you see and build beauty into the daily routines of your life?
