New routines have already cropped up in the last three weeks (it’s been three weeks now, uff da) of working remotely and social distancing. Like my eight o’clock run that rolls right into the 8:50 am standup so I attend sweatily and catching my breath until we close twenty minutes later and I can shower quickly before starting the real work.
The most peaceful new routine is the short walk I take at the end of the workday. It started because I needed to mail a letter and ended up walking the half-mile or so to my old work office to drop it in the letterbox (I’m sure there’s a closer place to do this but I haven’t found it and I’m not looking too hard anymore). It happened like that for a few days in a row — I had letters to drop off for work (usually checks that needed to go out and I’m the sole check writer at the company right now) so I took a walk at the end of the day.
It’s become a habit, letter or not, to walk for twenty or thirty minutes. Less for exercise and more for mental health to leave my apartment, soak up some sun that wasn’t out for my morning run, and create a barrier between work mode and evening time. Today I walked without a letter and ended up retracing the same path in the quiet parking lot a few times since it was particularly blessed by the warm sun. We’re due for rainy days for the foreseeable forecast so I tried to take in as much as I could.
I found myself, in the first minute of my walk, wanting to yell out “I’m so stressed!” but as soon as the thought came I looked at the sky and consciously told myself to change that mantra. Saying I’m stressed was only going to make me more stressed. I was handling everything the best I could and making an impact. The sun was out. Time to clear my head, listen to a podcast, and move the stress out of my body gently.
I’m feeling very grateful for my evening walk and hopefully I’ll continue, rain or shine, to make that time to step away from the screens and step out of my house. It’s as good as medicine to me.
With Love,
Natalie