life between the pages

“I spent my life folded between the pages of books.
In the absence of human relationships I formed bonds with paper characters. I lived love and loss through stories threaded in history; I experienced adolescence by association. My world is one interwoven web of words, stringing limb to limb, bone to sinew, thoughts and images all together. I am a being comprised of letters, a character created by sentences, a figment of imagination formed through fiction.”
Tahereh Mafi, Shatter Me

Wednesday, July 27, 2005

changes in the works

it is time for a re-focusing (did i spell that correctly?). i have always worked well when my day is divided up into little segments. mornings are for discovery, mid-day for work (meaning movement), afternoons for analysis and reflection, evenings for rest and rejuvenation. following that basic framework helps me to be productive and to get the most from each day's precious allotment of time. part of my frustration stemmed from the fact that i couldn't manage to get the last job's workflow to follow my natural inclination. mornings were full of activity, constant input that overcharged my batteries. by afternoon i was a wreck and just wanted a nap. so beyond the real life problems my rhythms were all screwed up. it made me that much less able to handle the stresses of that life.

it is amazing how much my attitude has improved over the last week of just being able to follow my own life rhythms. these may be unlike anyone else's, but for me, rising slowly and spending several hours gathering input has been helpful. then going out into the world, walking as much as possible, helped me to be able to think clearly. i came home & washed the car & cleaned up the flower beds (yes, in the heat! i have a very shady yard). and then wrote pages and pages in the afternoon. i haven't been that productive in ages. today i feel will be very similar.

how are your days structured? are you able to work within your natural inclinations? i'd like to know.

1 comment:

RaeS said...

To answer your question, my natural inclination is to stay up late and sleep well into the day, but I wish I were a morning person. My days aren't structured, not like your days anyway. Everyday is different. I just have to be awake at least 2 or 3 hours before the time the first thing I have to do that day has to be done and I have a few "requirements," I guess would be the word. I need to feel challenged occasionally, or I'll unconsciously set up obstacles for myself so that I do. I also need firm deadlines, or I procrastinate. And, most importantly, I have to have time during the day to just be by myself, think, and do something creative. I get cranky if I have to go several days without being creative. I've also noticed that I sleep much better when I'm able to exhaust myself during the day, or at least feel like I've accomplished something. I think I would benefit from more structure in my life, but at this point, it doesn't look like it will happen any time soon.