If there is one thing I have re-learned since the start of the year, it would be life is as extraordinary as you make it.
Such a simple truth and statement to make, but one I struggle with because when I’m set in routines day in and day out, life can feel quite ordinary. It’s only when I make time to stop and list all the things I’m grateful for that I can see how extraordinary my life is. I don’t do it often enough because my responsibilities pick me up like a bullet train and I am prone to becoming familiar with the daily grind.
The past 5 months have flown for me and it doesn’t feel like June, although the weather tells me otherwise.
The first half of the year saw me be honest about work related things that were no longer working for me – or more I was fed up with bad business practice. I needed something to help me sail in less choppier seas, without letting go of certain dreams I’m eager to see come to a reality.
With a good dose of common sense and a resignation that change was in order, I chased the change.
The change I’ve embarked on in the last few months has been good. Still challenging and tiring, but it will bring the desired results to our lives for the better.
It’s been an incredible couple of months where I’ve realised I can handle change better than I thought. I’m positioned in a place where I can help people and I see the value of the work I do. I am also learning something new every day. But with the highs and lows of change comes the exhaustion.
I have never been so tired. (And I no longer have a baby waking me in the middle of the night!)
I thought my body would have adapted to my new changes, but it’s still taking time and I’m trying to get better at resting when I can, instead of squeezing in something else from my to do list.
Of course, when I’m exhausted, I don’t have the energy to do anything extraordinary. Or fun. I’ve preferred to stay at home. There is always something to do around the house.
It takes energy to get out of the house and have fun. I know it’s always worth the effort, but I always have resistance before embarking on the said activity.
The last few weeks I’ve said yes to things I’d normally say no to.
It’s been a recalibration on my part to say yes to experiences that will benefit our family life for the better. They haven’t been earth shattering WOW experiences. But for my girls, they’ve meant something to them. And their excitement rubs off on me and I’m reminded a local trip out of the ordinary can be exciting.
Last Friday, I picked the girls up from school and had a McDonald’s picnic lunch at the local lake. The girls loved it (despite Maggie crying because her chicken nugget hurt her wobbly tooth). Esther even said, ‘mum, this feels like we’re on holidays.’
We then walked around the lake and played on every playground on the route. For a couple of hours we enjoyed the outdoors and it was a lot of fun.
On Saturday, I had a one-on-one day with Esther where we went shopping and had sushi train for lunch. The desire to spend time with my children has never been stronger. They’ve grown from babies to children quite quickly and I do not want my everyday responsibilities to stop me from enjoying them.
An extraordinary life is not hard to attain. It’s stewarding the gifts you have in your home. Your partner, your children, your family and your friends. It’s saying yes to new things, but also doing the same old in a different way. It’s not what you see on Instagram stories. It’s a life you create without the camera on.
Life can be as extraordinary as you make it. But sometimes it needs a recalibration on our part to make it so.
