It's about that time again. Everyone is either squeezing in the last of their summer trips or they've already started figuring out how to get back into that fall routine. For me, this is the first time (since age 5) that my life hasn't revolved around semesters. I got through 16 straight years of schooling, only to find myself working at a school after graduating college. Now that I no longer work there, I have no more formal connection to the rhythm of semesters. It's very strange!
But, as someone who enjoys routine and embracing the change of seasons, I plan on using this transition from summer to fall to make small changes that are just looking for a time to be made.
One thing I like to change periodically is my desktop background(s). Work for me, lately, has been a source of some anxiety, so I decided I need some reminders for myself as I move forward in the daily grind of life. I want to share these reminders with you in the form of desktop backgrounds. Whatever season you're in, I hope these notes are helpful for you. And if you prefer to just look at some plain ol' art on your computer, I've provided that as an option too.
Click the image you like to bring you to the download page, where you can then save the image it shows you.
One of the fastest ways that I spiral into an anxious frenzy is to think about everything I need to do in a week. Or month. Or year. Or lifetime. Ahh! I need to constantly remind myself that tomorrow's challenges will come, but for now I need to take a deep breath and work through the day that's in front of me. Let's take life, in all of it's beauty and hardships, one day at a time.
Allison Fallon's words in her book Packing Light moved me:
"Sometimes I think we get hung up on objectives, and it makes us too hard on ourselves. If we think the objective is to get a certain job, or a certain car, or a certain spouse, then of course we'll feel like a failure when that does't happen. Of course we'll wonder if we heard God wrong, or if we made a wrong turn somewhere. But what if the point isn't the end product? Or what if the end product isn't what we thought it was? What if the point is the [journey] and the end product is us?"
How about we all try to embrace and enjoy the process, the journey, which brings slow, daily growth and beauty.
And here is the simplest reminder that I always need: breathe. Take deep breaths. Relax your shoulders, unclench your jaw. It's going to be okay.
