Sweet Escape - Calm in the Chaos

Is it just me or March is one of the toughest months of the year? Borrowing from the sports world, March Madness really is an accurate description. The Season’s are changing (well, not as quickly as usual here in Toronto), people are anxiously awaiting what is next. The frenzy of the New Year and all the changes that come with that have settled and we’ve been in the flow for a period of time, now we’re looking for something new again.

It’s been an interesting few weeks. After a very busy week travelling across Western Canada, I have found myself a bit out of sorts lately, truly not myself. A bit drained, frustrated, stuck. Least to say it wasn’t a surprise when I dropped an egg on the kitchen floor this morning, and laughed as I rolled my eyes and wrote it off as a Monday. Just when you think I’d learned my lesson, I dropped a second one right after it. Now I was just plain pissed, at myself. I stopped, took a deep breath and reminded myself to slow down. Nothing good ever comes when I’m rushing, and things take me twice as long - even making breakfast. Not an hour later I booked a business flight on the wrong set of dates. Oh yeah, booked 4 flights starting a day too early moving between 3 cities. Almost forgot I had a conference call until my laptop beeped at me, just as I logged in to change my flights.

The afternoon wasn’t much better. I went from having a pretty hefty workload, of which I was hammering through, yet the number I was battling the number of emails in my inbox, which seemed to multiply by the minute. For every email I tackled, 3 new ones dropped in. It wasn't just work. Whatever it is in the air, I heard from three different men who have played various roles in my life out of the blue. 

I finally took a break and hit CrossFit. Where I also struggled to stay focused. I needed it. The chance to reconnect. Get out of the zone I was in and get some energy back up. Before I walked out the door to CrossFit I was about 30 seconds from booking a flight anywhere I could find - I just wanted to escape. 

Fortunately, I have come to learn that life is cyclical. Things get out of control sometimes. Things get crazy. They get overwhelming, uncomfortable. Sometimes things feel stuck. Things change. People come and go. Jobs get hectic. Personal life gets out of balance. Sometimes you just have a day that nothing goes right. Fortunately, it’s all going to pass and change again anyway. So ride the waves ashore. 

There are times when you are alone, time when you wish you had time to spend alone. Times when everyone wants to see you, and times when no one does. That’s life. The one thing I’m grateful to have learned in all of it, it’s ok sometimes to just stand still… let the world spin around you and take a breather. Disconnect from life. Reconnect with yourself. Spend some time enjoying the quiet and peace within. This is my escape. My calm in the chaos. I can go there anytime… no flights required.

My calm until the chaos passes - it always does :).  It is when the world seems to need the most of you that you must put yourself first.