saturday

It’s Saturday, and it’s my first day off after my first week at a new job, a job I really love so far and am very excited about and grateful to have!

Of course I had solid, large-ish plans for a day of productivity, but what has happened instead has been much better and more useful than if I had gone ahead with all the tasks I thought I better get done that I didn’t have time or energy for during the week… all the ways I thought I should “maximize” my weekend hours.

Instead, helped along by the initial encouragement from Jake, I decided to move my comfiest, thickest, squishiest hot pink papasan chair to the garage to be near him while he quietly and contentedly works on his latest engine maintenance project and I lounge in this chair to read the day away!

We ate Subway sandwiches together (half of both saved for dinner, so I’m sure we’ll be repeating that shortly!), and I proceeded to indeed sit/lay in this chair, with little movement all day, and finish the book I was reading.

When I woke up this morning, I was far more tired than I usually am upon waking on a weekend morning, and my body was sore and weighty and sleepy, like it wasn’t ready to be used, like it was full of foggy exhaustion and a little bit of lead. When I told Jake near lunch time that I felt like I really should get started with something productive and active for my day, he basically said, “why? If you are tired, and you’ve just started a new job (big week), and you want to rest and relax, then that’s what you should do today.”

Ah, Jake. Always the person to remind me of what I need to hear. In this case, as has happened many times, the person to nudge me towards what I need, often giving me the unnecessary but reassuring permission I am reluctant to give myself, to just relax and recharge.

What a great day of unwinding.

Here are some things I have noticed, from my hot pink chair, in the garage on this summer day, that I wouldn’t have noticed had I gone ahead and stuck to my plan:

the temperature and quality of the air

my legs getting just a little sweaty where they rested on the chairs, sticking lightly to the cushion

my dog’s contented sleepiness and her cute movements, sounds, and poses throughout the day

my dog’s fur, a little chalky and dusty to the touch, from lying on the garage floor

Jake, dancing and humming and having a great day — working hard and happily on his airplane project — walking out into the sunshine to tilt his head all the way up to watch an airplane fly overhead — the motion his throat makes as he swallows, with his neck arched all the way back, like so — his smiles and funny remarks made my direction as he points his wrench at me

a hummingbird, suspended for one moment against the blue sky before buzzing off

the big tree outside the door

the absolute coziness of sinking into this chair

Sometimes we need a day in which time slows down and everything can be still. To be together and notice ourselves and each other more. To listen and watch. To finish the final two thirds of a delicious novel. To bank happy little moments. To rest. Our relationship often feels closer and even more satisfying when we get time to just putter around beside each other, separate but together, with no agenda or obligations or schedule. I often feel much better, too. These days are a breath of fresh air.