When the living is easy and the rules are lax
1. Don’t even dream of “acting your age.” Now is the time for taking salsa dancing – secretly if you must. Or getting up an hour earlier – it’s light then – and writing down your most unformed thoughts. Take risks. Make a fool of yourself.
2. Make one tiny change in your routine, because even the smallest alteration shakes up the whole day – in a good way.
3. Clean house – not the cupboard kind. But get rid of skeletons in the attic that needn’t bother you any more. Of so-called friends that are making you feel guilty, lazy, or inadequate. Of obligations that were onerous all winter but are now moreso because they keep you out of the sunshine. Say No whenever the spirit moves you.
4. Make a new friend. One of the best ways to get to know yourself in new ways is to get to know someone new. There are so many summer-only activities that can bring you in contact with people you don’t know. The old adage that if you follow your own interests you will meet like-minded people applies to library sales, summer classes, motorcycle driving classes, volunteering at a Y kids’ program.
5. Do unto yourself as you have been doing unto others. You know what I mean here. Now is the time to take care of yourself in the ways you know are important, because you have been on the giving end for so long. It’s all about time. Taking time.
Taking time out. Wasting time. Spending time with yourself, on yourself, doing things by yourself.
6. Prepare for the worst. Not by dreading it, but by making sure your files are up to date – your insurance, your will, your finances (such as they are). Pick a rainy Saturday and check out your preparations for a rainy day.
7. Don’t let the body thing hold you back. Go take a jump in the lake, even if it means exposing those white, limp thighs. But also schedule those checkups that are a key to maintaining health.
8. Retool some relationships. It is easier to talk things through, to enjoy each other’s company, to redistribute responsibilities when the pressure is off. Even if the pressure isn’t off, it seems to feel that way in the summer. And with all the changes you are going through, there is surely some tweaking to do in that department.
9. Try some life experiences on for size. If you have spent the last year or so asking yourself “What am I going to do with the rest of my life?” now is the time to test out some of the answers you are considering. If you are thinking of moving, take a visit to one of the prospective cities. If you are thinking of working in the nonprofit world, volunteer a couple of hours at an organization you are interested in. If you are thinking of devoting yourself seriously to your garden or to chess or to karate, devote yourself not-so-seriously for a couple of weeks and see how it feels.
10. Speaking of “not-so-serious,” all of the above is really about not taking yourself so seriously but taking control of your life as best you can. Whatever the fall and winter bring, now is now, and that’s where the opportunities for self-discovery are. Surprise yourself!