August Wrap-Up

Wow, August! It felt like a month of introspection, and lots and lots of work on myself. I took time to explore podcasts that helped me sort through my feelings regarding the permanent split between me and my father's side of the family. I finally watched shows on Netflix and Amazon that I've been wanting to watch for a while. I sat down with my bank and made a financial plan. I've written every day. I've walked 3-4 times a week. And I've restarted my morning devotionals. It's been a good month of reflection and making sure the summer ended on a positive note.

Physical Lessons

I left off July with wanting to find my self-worth through spending more time with God. I've tried being very mindful of what God wants for me, and listening to His words when I look in the mirror every morning. After listening to a very frank podcast on disordered eating, I had to be real with myself: I'm a chronic overeater/binge eater. So I took a very prayerfully sought out next step and ordered the Intuitive Eating Workbook. It has helped me so much in getting back in tune with my body. I've spent maybe three weeks on it and I'm in the third chapter - trying to take it slow, absorb what I'm reading and learning, and put it to good practice. I won't recommend it because it's something anyone should be ready for before they buy it - not because they feel pressured to. Not because they feel it's the latest trend or that it can help you lose weight. Going through the workbook has required 100% honesty with myself about my eating habits. It has not been easy. And if your heart's not in it, you won't stick with it. It's not about dieting, losing weight, or looking a certain way. It's about listening to my body and what it wants, eating when I'm hungry, and stopping when I'm not. I feel so much more at peace with myself, so much more forgiving, and I'm learning to love myself more along the way.

Relationship Growth

With all of that being said, I've found with a newfound investment in myself, I've had the desire to invest more in others. I've reevaluated my role as a friend and mentor, and found that my selfish, materialistic attitude lately has hindered my relationships. It's easy to adapt a "woe-is-me" attitude when I'm recklessly spending money trying to obtain materialistic things that don't matter when I could be making memories instead. It's been hard to come to terms with. So the last half of the month, I've tried texting my friends regularly. Just checking in. Asking for a quick phone call on my way home from work. Letting them know that I'm praying for them. Things, I feel like, most good people/friends do already, but that I had not done very often. It means my schedule is a little fuller, and I am completely content with that. 😊

Twitter Highlights

Professional Skills

August has been slowwww in the office, but as things pick up in September, I'm always reminded to not rush through projects. It's hard not to do! But rushing through a project, or not taking the time to think about what someone has asked me to do can get me in trouble in the end. I'm still trying to shake that my role in my organization isn't a mindless one, and that people are expecting quality work from me. I'm not just delivering copies or memos. I'm creating content, and that content needs to be double- and triple-checked because . . . responsibilities. I feel immature writing things like this, but I've never been in a position that required so much accountability. As a teacher, I was never really observed (not saying that's a good thing - standards are important to be held to). And before that, I did methodical, repetitive work that didn't require critical thinking. So, here I am. Writing about something I'm sure I've mentioned before, because I'm reminded at least once a week that I need to slow down and think about what I'm doing. Because it comes back on me if I don't.

Books I've Read

My friend Meg gave me The Art of Relevance by Nina Simon, and I read it in a day. It is so good if you're in nonprofit work, or you're working on a passion project that you'd like people to be a part of, or if you're involved in your community. It breaks down relevance in ways I had never thought of before - how to handle "insiders" who are fine with the way things have always been, and how to incorporate "outsiders" who maybe never knew the information you had was something that existed, let alone something they'd be interested in. How relevance can be damaging, and how saying something like, "History is important!" can make what you're doing irrelevant just through those three words (three words I've been guilty of saying). As Meg and I move forward on a passion project we'd like to make public in January 2018, it was a perfect book to read. I highly recommend it if you feel like you have something important to say, but just don't know how to say it.

Monthly Mantra

August Reflections

I honestly thought I'd be getting to this point of the post and telling you that Wayfaring would be taking an indefinite hiatus because trying to juggle a daily writing blog, a bullet journal, and a blog of this nature, plus an additional project, plus work, plus all of the other things I do when I get home in the evenings was just too much. But as I wrote this post, I no longer feel that way. By now, you know I'm overly ambitious with this space. I promise posts I don't deliver ALL the time. That zucchini bread recipe from July? I made it. It turned out okay. Tomato recipes? Psh. We've been eating tomato sandwiches for weeks, but that's about the only thing I want to make with them. That Thug Kitchen challenge? It died a long time ago when we made ravioli that turned out just okay - we spent over TWO hours making the recipe and didn't get much satisfaction from it. I think we're just going to stick with that mango curry recipe, folks. Sorry to disappoint.

But if you can bear with me for the stuff that I do post, when I post them, I will always appreciate your support. The only post I'm going to try to write this month is one on the podcasts that have gotten me through my commutes. August has definitely been the month of podcasts over music, so no new music to share. But as the days get more dreary and cold, I'll be pulling out some of my favorite albums by artists like A Fine Frenzy, Of Monsters and Men, NEEDTOBREATHE, Jamestown Revival, and Mumford & Sons - all that hipster music. Haha.

Things I watched in August include: Ozark (Netflix), The People vs. OJ Simpson (Netflix), Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (Netflix), and I've started The Wire (Amazon) and am rewatching Sex and the City (Amazon). I rewatched the LOTR movies too while working from home and will now need another few years before I can watch them again. Ozark is like a more financially focused Breaking Bad - definitely dark for Jason Bateman. I liked it, but it took me off guard. I loved The People vs. OJ - I loved learning about that story as I was very, very young when that trial took place. Rogue One was okay, but probably not something I'd watch again or own.

Things I was grateful for in August:

1. Having a great day with my mom at Assateague Island and Ocean City

2. Divine peaches

3. Making a budget

4. Helping Robby prepare his classroom

5. Booking our 2018 Florida vacation!!

Thanks for reading. I'm always open for podcast, show, movie, and book suggestions, so please leave me your recommendations below!