There is nothing quite like Summer Break. Three whole months off from classes and exams and all of the group projects. An opportunity to try something you love during an internship (without the commitment of it being your full-time job yet). Going back home and enjoying all the people you love there. Even if you are taking classes or living on campus, it is still a different, more relaxed pace. And if you live somewhere like I do (the Upper Midwest), you finally get to enjoy the weather you wait all winter long for.
Summer is meant to be enjoyed. Soaked up. It’s a time to rest well and enjoy the simple things in life. It’s built into your year as a time to enjoy all your hard work. Summer invites a sense of pause. This is why I believe summer is the best season to simplify. Not that you can’t begin to simplify in any season. But it’s definitely the easiest to start in summer.
Simplicity is already built into summer. Summer fun includes trips to the lake, hiking, laying by the pool, getting more rest, enjoying the beauty of nature, drinking more water, eating healthy foods, days off, vacations and perhaps generally being more present where you’re at. It’s a time when your routine may look less regimented and more focused on the simpler things. Chances are you have downtime with people you enjoy, more flexibility in your schedule and feel more freedom to say no when you don’t want to do something. There isn’t the same sense of rush or pressure you feel during the school year. So enjoy it.
Use this Season to Practice Simplicity
Here are some ideas (big & small!) to try out:
- Practice being present where you’re at.
- Create a routine of going on walks or getting enough sleep.
- Leave your phone behind when you can.
- Wake up and enjoy a coffee or tea on the porch in the sunshine.
- Tidy up your room and get rid of old things that no longer serve you.
- Reflect on your school year and what you’d like to do differently next semester.
- Take time to journal or pray or do yoga.
- Say no when you don’t want to do something.
- Get a planner and physically write things in it.
- Figure out your priorities in this season.
- Drink more water.
- Take a risk and try something new.
- End a relationship that’s holding you back.
- Eat healthy foods.
- Take a class to make your next semester easier.
- Spend your time with people who encourage you to be your best self.
- Define what your best self looks like in this season.
- Go to a class at the gym.
- Use your vacation days.
- Enjoy the in-between freedom of being an adult in your parents’ house.
- Figure out what feels truly restful to you.
- Do more of those restful activities.
Every time you embrace simplicity in one of these areas another one will open up. (Here are a few more places to start). Enjoy the simple joy of saying no to the things that don’t matter in order to create the space for the things that actually do.
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