dare to make room for intentional moves

Ready for a mental jaunt to kick off whatever point in time it happens to be in the day?

Perfect, I'm not, so at least that makes one of us.

A few months back - as most of us do for sanity and clarity - I stepped away from social media for a couple weeks and some odd number of days.

If not just for sanity, taking an intentional "break" allows us to:

1) detox the expectations we put on ourselves and the comparison that drifts in this space

2) become grounded in our reality verses a filtered version of it

3) set time to consider and work through personal life happenings (last time I had very little luck or "progress", it's fine; not everything good is about forward motion).

By the end of any tech-sabbatical, there lies a hope to have better understanding and a drafted blue print of our boundaries with consumption and sharing on any "social" platform (we want to share just enough to connect, but not too much where we might expose parts of ourselves that are sacred and reserved for those in our inner most circles, ya know?).

In an unexpected turn of events, writing became fairly acquainted with the back seat of my soul and mind.

Partly due to the perfectionistc standards I place on myself (for example, I will always tell someone that enough is better than perfect, yet those words don't sink too deep with me).

And mostly because I was (and still am if I'm being honest) mentally fatigued and not entirely capable of putting words together for another human that isn't my toddler or my boss to understand.

It's difficult to write when the words I've been repeating to myself lately are the opposite of what I typically encourage others to do or say (in other words, my inner critic Betty has held the mic for awhile, and I'll be darned if she spews those things at you).

So as a way to avoid my hypocrisy, I just step back from writing completely.

Probably not the best approach, but it's honest and raw and I don't like offering words to the world that I find hard to soak in myself.

And guess what?

This post has been 3 months in the making - so whether or not bits of it are hypocritical, we're here in the published space, babe.

Okay back to the social media break.

Within the span of just a couple weeks, I felt deeply disappointed, shaken, elated, heavily confused and also relieved - and as someone who feels all the things very deeply - it's quite annoying and wonderful.

Anyone relate?

What a life this life is.

And what is life without intentional movements (and no, I'm not talking about physical exercise, though that can definitely be a part of it).

As intentionality is the protagonist here, let's dissect the difference between accidental and intentional movements:

accidental: acting in a mindless manner, without much thought given to a situation; could be due to habits or drifting with the flow of what you're told (because that's the easier option and the path of least resistance). growth can occur in times like this, especially with life giving us a run for our money with surprises. There is potential to learn a lot about our abilities and limits, here.

Intentional: to be in a constant state of awareness; choosing to take action on a matter of importance to you, rather than staying idle; not afraid to ask why. Life throws you curveballs and lemons without your say - intentionality prepares you for that as you practice throwing your own every now and then.

I know this corner of the internet is about choosing intentionality overall, but we still shouldn't feel bad for leaning into one over the other from time to time.

I don't believe there's a requirement in life to have a balance between the two (or of any kind), because our brains don't operate that way.

We have control over a lot of our focus, and life will change, altering our plans and our approach and how our minds find rest.

However, I will recommend that we consider the latter as the one to bring forth wisdom in our personal growth, meaningful relationships and thoughtful rhythms.

stay cognizant of what you're pursuing in the long run and don't feel bad for asking why.

In the title I say "make room" because as I stated earlier, the path with least resistance, barriers or predictable hardships is to be idle.

The patterns of comfort we create as creatures of habit tend to take up a lot of our time and mental space (who has the time to consider new ideas, perspectives, and rhythms?)

So to make room for intentional actions, words and so forth is a bold pursuit.

It's not a pretty one, and you will almost always be a hot mess, but it's worth the chase.

Between the idle days and deliberate pursuits, here are some things to keep in mind:

It's okay to have doubts.

It's okay to change priorities.

And it's okay to adjust what was once known as a constant and is now approached as a variable.

Cheers to deeper breaths, a slow pace, and the boldness to make room for intentional moves.