Routine Ready

Life can be a source of change and adjustments; some renewals and self-discovery. Redundancy is never far. Through it all, if we can still recognize who we are, then we're still on a path that has light. We know that we have not flat-lined from the hits and the routines of life.  It is often bittersweet to have a routine. Routines give us a sense of normancy but a dose of boredom if we aren't careful. We need routines. So what does a routine look like? For some it's simple, others it's complex. Wake up,  gear up, go to work, send a text, send an email, make a last minute call. Complain about something. Get off work. Go home. Gear down. Relax, bathe, eat, go to bed. Sleep. Wake up the next day. Press rewind. Whew! Thank God! But....what did you gain? What purpose did you fill along the way? Did you enjoy the ride? Are you dreading doing it all over again?

It's the answers to these questions that give life, meaning. The answers to these questions signal whether or not we are happy with our lives, happy with fulfilling our purpose and happy with our routines. What makes the routine worthwhile? Should we add a splash of laughter and a few vacations throughout? Is it a walk in the park or that bowl of ice cream? Is it the chance to meet a celebrity or to finally get that bonus check you waited on for so long? For some, it is simply the chance to have a routine, not taking it for granted but realizing that somebody somewhere is starving for a routine that some of so carelessly want to escape from. While I don't want to dismiss my routine, I try to make sure that as I go through the routine, I am living life and not just going through life. I spent many years, just going through the motions of life. Living life for other people. Doing what other people wanted. Taking care of other people, listening to other people's advice that didn't even apply to me. Exhaustion and feeling empty helped me to snap out of it! My routines are now designed to make the routine feel unpredictable. How? For example, I do laundry every week. Nothing spectacular. So one week I drunk a glass of wine and played music as I did the laundry. Another week I had my sisters come over and we laughed and talked as I did the laundry. The routines are necessary. Make the routine feel unpredictable. Make it interesting. -Leen