What's gone on this week
I know it's still August but it feels like fall is creeping in. My energy has changed and I've got tons of ideas popping into my head all the time. It makes writing more difficult because I want to go in a bunch of different directions - reading, learning, painting, cooking, exploring. Sitting and focusing on one project is not nearly as fun as following my creative impulses in 40 different directions.
This happens every year at the end of the summer/early fall. It's one of the reasons that I originally wanted to finish my current draft by the end of August - I knew that my attention would wane and I would want to spend time doing other things - but I know that I'll be working on it for at least another four weeks. To be successful, and not end up tired or really unhappy with the process at the end, I am going to use my seasonal rhythm to help me get through it.
I'm big on pattern recognition. I talked about this in my Holiday Self Care series last December. All of us follow patterns in every part of our life. If we recognize them we can use them to set ourselves up for success. For example - you always mean to plan things in advance but keep putting it off until the last minute. Not only is everything rushed and thrown together, which you hate because you really want to live a Pinterest kind of life, but you feel guilty about it the whole time. Recognizing this you have a choice - you can set things up so that you can't procrastinate (recruit friends or family to keep you on track, pair planning tasks with ones you do regularly, etc.) or you accept that you will procrastinate and simplify the event so that you can pull it together at the last minute with less fuss and ditch the guilt.
When I get my fall energy I want to run around doing all kinds of things and end up exhausted with each thing sort of half done. I have way more ideas than I have either time or energy. Some of them I like, but some of them are just fun to think about. I could skip the doing and feel fine. Knowing this I'm going to make time to indulge my ideas in day dreaming. If I keep thinking about something over multiple weeks I'll consider making time to do it. And I will make time on the weekends for something that isn't just writing. That may mean doing more writing during the week which I can do.
I don't want to miss out on this part of fall. I love it. I also know that it'll pass. Come end of September or the beginning of October things will settle down and my energy will be a little lower.
What are you rhythms and patterns at this time of year? How can you harness them to accomplish the things that you want to do?
Gardening Update
I got tired of looking at my sad, dying Dahlias so I made a trip to the nursery for some late summer color to replace them with. I ended up with Echinacea, a Zinnia, and some small white Chrysanthemums. My balcony railing is really more part shade than sun, I've found, so I'm not sure if any of them will survive but it's all an experiment.
I've also sowed my first foxglove seeds for next year. I loved the foxglove I grew this year so for next year I'm planning a succession of them. Half will be sowed now and the rest in very early spring so that when one finished flowering the other will take over.
What I'm loving lately
I'm very late to the game, but I'm finally reading The Hate You Give. Loving it.
I've been trying to buy more locally or from independent sellers rather than ordering things from Amazon all the time. I noticed the packaging really adds up and if I look for something locally rather than just hopping on Amazon I buy less stuff. To that end I bought a Seedling Heat Mat at my local nursery that I've been eyeing on Amazon. I'm going to be sharing more of these purchases on my Instagram stories and would love to hear about things that you're buying and loving to.
Word Count
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