The Quiet Of The Moment

The end to a chaotic week

This past week was anything but quiet. I always thought of myself as a somewhat quiet person, getting loud only when the moment requires it. I actually can feel my stress level go up when someone starts to yell or gets upset. I just like my quiet and peace. It is definitely the introvert in me. My world is not quiet though. I have a busy job, that requires I talk to people and then go and have a calm demeanor when dealing with their pets. I have 3 kids that are anything but quiet, and actually had one of them admit to me that they were not comfortable one night when they woke up and realized that our house was really quiet. I admit I didn’t know how to take that news because she was basically saying even in the middle of the night our house it not quiet, which is odd to me since we are all asleep. So what does it mean to be quiet? When we go to the library and are too loud the librarian says “Shhhhhhh!” to us and we lower our voices. When there is someone sleeping we try and walk lighter and keep our voices down. But being quiet could also mean being calmer. Our new puppy Charlie does way better when we are calm with her. Loud noises make he skittish, and when we talk at a higher volume she tucks her tail and hunches low. For people like me, talking quiet to people who are upset or to people who have made me upset helps deflate the situation.

As I said though this week was busy, which meant it was also not quiet. There were people working and moving quick, and getting things done. There were dogs barking, cats meowing and even a guinea pig squeaking. With all of this going on, receptionist are asking questions, talking to clients and taking payments. Assistants are moving animals, cleaning cages and holding animals. When I am in my car going to a client’s house the music is playing, the phone is dinging and ringing and Google maps is just trying to get me to turn right in 500 feet so I don’t have to turn around. Once work is done, I drive home and step inside a house that has dogs playing, girls talking about something that happened on Twitter, and the boy and his dad in an intense game of Fortnight. Amid the “glad you are homes” and the changing of clothes I will hear about everyone’s day within a 5 minute period of being home. Dinner will get done and we will eat, and then a more peaceful night? Mostly, with stories still to be told and school problems to solve the night goes on. Now I am not saying I don’t enjoy the interactions that I have with my coworkers and family, but there is a point, and maybe you have it as well, where it feels like my brain just puts up this wall and from that point on nothing will get past it until I have a chance to unwind. This week has felt like the wall has been up a lot, almost like I was in survival mode. Get through each day just so I could make it to the next day. To say I needed a break and some quiet was an understatement. I think when there is so much “information” thrown at you all the time that is really all you can do, survive.

This weekend was my reset button. A good friend of mine has a cabin in the woods. This weekend my hubby and I were able to get away. My best friend came to the house to spend the night with the kids and the animals and we drove away looking forward to a peaceful weekend. Heck even my intermittent fasting app was telling me I needed this with one of the weekly challenges being do some self care. Well BodyFast I did! Part of Living Joyfully is to realize when your body is going into survival mode and do something about it. Self care has to happen, when you are the type of person who likes to care for others and be there for them, you have to make sure to do the same for yourself. Even if it means scheduling it in your calendar. This trip to the cabin was supposed to happen for our anniversary back in November. Covid and other events prevented the trip back then, and moved the trip to this weekend. The cabin was perfect. A wood burning fireplace, big comfy couches, a steak dinner and alone time with the hubby. We didn’t have a worry or care in the world. The weekend ended with a long walk in the snow, and good conversations. It was a great reset, it drained the survival mode from me and replaced it with a relaxed mode. I have always found peace in the woods, whether camping in a tent or sleeping in a cabin. Sometimes it takes me a while to realize I need a reset to relax mode, and I suffer for it. You always hear the saying “you need to listen to your body” but it seems that is the hardest “command” to follow. Do you ever find yourself going into “survival mode”? How do you cope with it? As important as it is, even the people that are most successful at it are that way because they have made it a habit, something they are not willing to give up. So is taking care of yourself important enough for you? How can you make it happen for you? I would love to hear your thoughts. Until next time:

You are worth the quiet moment, you are worth the deeper breath, you are worth the time it takes to slow down. Be still and rest

Morgan Harper Nicols