One of my favorite (and hardest) lessons I’ve learned (over and over again) the past decade is that we can’t be full speed ahead all the time, that life is made for seasons and some of those seasons are seasons of slowing down. While some people feel this pull toward slowing down in the winter, here in Phoenix I’ve always felt a pull toward a bit of a reverse hibernation- when the highs of 115 call me toward a rhythm of siestas and slowing down to enjoy that ice cream cone before it melts. I am working so hard to pass that knowledge on to friends, to my kids, to whoever will listen really.

Here are a few ways I’m letting myself embrace a season of slowing down this summer.

*Slow Running: Look, I am NEVER front of the pack, I have no delusions of ever making it to a podium in a race… but I am giving myself permission this summer to slow down even more and rebuild some base mileage this summer. If I don’t slow down, odds are good I’m just going to stop or get injured or burn out. This isn’t my season for a bunch of speedwork. this is my season for acclimating to the heat and logging time on my feat in spite of the challenging weather.

*Saying NO to Multitasking: I was having a really great talk on a trail run last week about how one of the most successful pursuits of rest was last year’s project of listening to an album all the way through while doing NOTHING ELSE. No laundry, no email answering, no wordle… just listening to and enjoying the music. I STILL struggle with this sometimes because the productivity addiction in me is REAL. So I have to be intentional with this season of choosing to enjoy a podcast or tv show without having to justify it with doing dishes or folding laundry at the same time. Will it stay this way? No, the whole point of it being a season is that I know the chaos of other times of year dictates other methods to the madness. But for the next 2 months… we’re giving this a try.

*Saying YES to Less and Resetting the Rhythms: I’m saying this knowing FULL WELL I was not great with it for June… my calendar honestly makes me want to cry a bit, BUT- it is still a step back from the school year commitments, and progress not perfection. Since we are still doing quite a bit this month, I am already looking forward to slowing down even more in July and just saying no to good things to focus on just a few of the very best things (more on that below). Hoping to take some of the lessons of saying yes to less into the next school year because my goodness do I still struggle with keeping margin in this new season of parenthood.

*Taking a break… (from this!): I take an annual break from blogging each year during the summer. This year I am once again taking July off to brainstorm what I want to be sure to share the second part of the year and to really enjoy time with the kids home from school instead of trying to find a few hours each week to write. I’m taking a break from the other blog I write for as well…. similar to running this is in the hopes of slowing down so I don’t burn out and want to quit the whole thing!

SO… if you miss me, feel free to revisit some of the old posts on your favorite subjects and if not, enjoy the quiet around here until August!

Do you have anything that you need to slow down or take a break from? Seasons of slow can be so good for you, but they are HARD to commit to when we are wired for stress and “good better best” as Kate Bowler often says.