My favorite conscious bites concept is: KISS, keep it simple sweetheart. That’s what I’m practicing this month and I am surprised at how easily I do that in the kitchen and how UNeasy is this “August Break” exercise I’ve embarked on. According to Susannah Conway, August Break is “a sweet no-rules community project that involves sharing one photo (or more) a day on your blog for the whole of August. Can be any sort of photo. Can include some words, or not. Doesn’t even have to be every day. The idea is to simply sink into the joys of the month while taking a wee break from the obligations of blogging.”
There are no rules, no expectations, just the experience of watching what unfolds.
What unfolded for me today is how programmed I am to do things “right” and that there really is no right or wrong way to do anything. If I don’t have time to cut the banana into the bowl and sprinkle it with yummies, I can eat it right out of the peel. I give myself permission to do that. Why can’t I give myself permission to simply post a photo with no words?
Well, partly, because I am so very visual and when I look at my blog page I don’t like the way it looks with all that white space. Uh huh, a metaphor here for sure. I don’t like the way my life looks with all that white space, either.
So I fill it.
Old habits die hard. I think the universe is calling for a little more white space. So I’m going to take this in smaller steps. Instead of going from writing much
to writing nothing,
I am going to practice writing less.
Can you relate? What habit can you change with just a small tweak instead of a major overhaul? Will you join me in doing just a little bit less of something?
9 thoughts on “A Little Bit Less”
Sue Ann, I just caught sight of this post during a very busy day and had to say- I can TOTALLY relate to this! I have realized that I am very fond of filling up my ‘white space’ with… oh, anything and everything. I don’t fill up my blog with pictures these days, but I sure do fill up my life with too many jam-packed activities and habits. On the advice of our dear mutual friend Laura, just earlier today, I’m going to start reading in the evenings again. Aaaaahhhh… An experiment in ease-y living!
white space. breathing room. a place to stretch out your arms, both metaphorical and real. i, too, have stepped back, am taking stock, and letting go of the things that don’t feed me–and like Helen, i am embracing reading in the evenings, too!
oh, and *right* is really only useful when giving or receiving directions 🙂
thanks for the reality check–i’m in such good company with you!
Sue Ann I am so with you on this. I had a nice week off in Mexico with LOTS of white space and now I am trying to keep the tide from turning back as I return to my in-box and tasks to be done! And yes, Helen took my cue of reading which has been such a pleasure this summer, to dive into some books that are real page-turners, versus learning, learning learning. My goal is to keep my summer attitude going at least until the end of September!
I’m very good at filling up the white space or the free time and am an expert at making things way more elaborate and complicated then they need to be. So, my mantra this year has been simplify as I try to find exercise the law of diminishing returns in my life. I love the idea of creating space: space to breathe, space to live, and space to create. Will be holding onto the image of white space.
I am waiting for the Universe to guide me to a place where I am needed by many fewer people so I can enjoy as much white space as I need (which is a lot). In the meantime I’m trying to leave a little more space between me and my sons. They’re both at ages where they need to walk alone a little more. And it may be much harder for me than for them.
SueAnn, just wanted to let you know that I think you are great! Thanks for your work!
Yes, we should definitely practice doing the opposite of what comes natural to us. I once heard a very wise woman say that the Buddhists believe we have a 1000 perspectives available to us – and that the average person only uses two: right or wrong. I love that perspective on life and I love your approach to changing a habit. It’s not about making it wrong, it’s just about choosing to do something differently in the future. This way we don’t become slaves to our habits but servants of free will. Beautiful Sue Ann – as always.
I, too, experience a knee-jerk reaction to fill up “the end of the page” (be it the blank lines below my signature on a letter or continuing to describe something instead of letting a person/reader draw their own conclusions.) I think you’re onto something big here, Sue Ann. S – P – A – C – E is O – K.
And delicious space it was!