We all need to recharge every now and then. As I get older, that every now and then becomes more frequent and even more necessary. Sometimes, I simply recharge by spending an afternoon in my couch, watching movies and crocheting, but other times a deeper recharging experience is required and what better option than traveling to somewhere new and sunny.

A couple of friends and I spent five days in Lisbon during the bank holiday weekend and it was bliss. Walking through those narrow streets, stopping for tea and knitting, a gelato every day and sun shining on our faces. Oh how I need it!

It is very easy to go down a path where being busy is valued over our wellbeing. Where we get trapped in a consumerism rabbit hole that makes us work harder and longer. Where we forget how to listen to our bodies and look for the signs that tell us that we should stop. Stop and take walk, stop and listen to music, stop and knit, stop and read a book. Anything that feels good and gets you to unwind and feel comfortable in your own skin again.

The one advice I would give (and I have to continue to give to myself) is to stop apologising and justifying the little or big things you need to do to get yourself back in alignment. If you needed to spend the whole weekend in bed but it felt great, so what? If you are the only one in your office getting away from the desk at lunch because you need it, don’t feel bad for one minute. If you need a friend rather than being alone, trust me: a true friend doesn’t need you to justify or explain why you called out of the blue asking for company.

So take a minute to think: what does your body and your mind really need right now to feel in balance again?  Then grab your courage and just do it: no excuses, no apologies, no thinking of what others may think. And I say “courage” because being brave is not only about the big decisions in life, is about the smaller ones as well. Be you, who you need to be right now and stop apologising to others for trying to be at peace with yourself. That is true courage to me.

I know I am not there yet myself, these words are as much for you as they are for me. I am a work in progress and realising that is what really counts.

xxx

Sol