Sundays

I used to hate Sundays. They reminded me of everything that had to be done in the following week or all the oncoming responsibilities I had. Now, I love Sundays. I have my routine each Sunday. I know what I like to do to “reset” for the week ahead. Although recently, I’ve noticed something even more important than a newfound like of a day.

I like the calm I feel in Charleston.

Now let me explain this because that might sound a little weird. Being an anxious person, I’ve had to learn how my body responds to situations - what makes me nervous, certain patterns I might notice about myself, etc. I like to think I live a very happy life. However, I hadn’t realized that in the past my body had gotten so used to enduring some form of stress, that I truly didn’t know what it felt like to “even out” and feel calm.

The past few years of my life have been fast. While I don’t have much control over growing up, the adjustments of graduating school, entering the workforce, and moving new places are quick to begin with. I was very used to a self-inflicted productivity mentality. I thought I was failing or ”wasting” my day if I wasn’t always doing something (a very toxic mentality to have I know). As crazy as it sounds, I had to teach myself and my body how to truly relax.

For years, I remember my mom saying to me that one day everything will slow down and I won’t feel like I’m sprinting anymore. Life won’t feel like it’s coming full speed ahead.

As I was driving around today, I took a moment to look around me and realized that I haven’t felt that anxious “running full speed ahead” feeling in a long time. I now take time to enjoy little moments more and more. I do things that make me happy. I appreciate how many changes I’ve gone through the past few years and where that’s taken me. Even on slower days, I find moments of joy much easier than I had in the past - and I feel very grateful to Charleston for that!

While it definitely helps being in such a beautiful environment, and I’m not saying I’ll never feel stressed again, I’m starting to realize that this way of life might be what my mom was talking about all these years. Finally feeling grounded and at peace with the way life is today - not tomorrow, not in a year, not in a couple years. Just feeling good about the present.

I feel blessed to have people in my life that are solid. I feel blessed to finally have that calmer mindset I once thought was unattainable. And I feel very blessed to be in a place that makes me appreciate the Sundays in my life more :)