Course Correction

Our vacation was just the kind of break I had envisioned. We connected with each other and with nature (ocean, sand, sky, sun, shells, dolphins!). We relaxed into a new rhythm based on togetherness. Already I miss it and know that it is my role to bring it back to us here at home.

There is something about the ocean that brings me back to center when I have become unbalanced; the connection with nature clears my mind and helps me remember the life I want to be living. The connection is so important to me that when we were assigned to a room without an ocean view (but close to the pool) we requested to be moved. I didn't mind climbing up 50 steps each time I went to the pool; I needed the ocean view.

I wasn't without tasks; I tidied daily, made the bed, cooked most of our meals, and did laundry. There was, however, a simplicity to it ~ my attention wasn't fragmented the way it is when I am at home. There is no way to make home as simple as a week away at a resort, but certainly home can be made simpler.

Coming down ill after returning home was not fun, especially as the house looked like it had been hit by a tornado Sunday night. I had planned to put everything to rights Monday but woke up feeling as though I might die, so that plan was scrapped and I did pretty much nothing all day. Since then I am feeling a little better (no fever) but I know not to push things too fast so I have been making lists and plans on the computer.

I am very glad that I chose not to take the laptop with me on this trip; I was able to see that a) I spend too much time on the computer, and b) I don't really miss it when I don't have it. Tuesday I worked on decluttering my inboxes and I also made the decision to remove two websites from my bookmarks bar, including facebook; it is so easy to get sucked into seeing what everyone is up to. One trick that helps me is hiding the status of people I don't know personally; my news feed updates far less frequently when I'm limit the updates to people I have actually met in the flesh.

I will be returning to the Down-to-Earth Forums just as soon as I feel a little better and figure out exactly how to work the computer into my routine. I think I will need a solid hour there each day as a moderator. Right now I am still rather depleted and not very excited about any of the topics, but I am trying to pop in daily and add my voice to the conversations.