These days, I’m in the habit of arising to noises of several cars driving by my current humble home, as people go to work in the morning. I usually fall back to sleep for a little while, and have another dream or two. It’s surreal, as in actuality all of 15 to 20 minutes elapse, but it feels like hours of rolling around in partial awakeness. As my mind returns to this waking dream life, I consider where I want to venture out to sit with a coffee and read, research, distract myself a little, and do some writing or editing work.
I’ll take in some pretty faces and interesting people that are around me, too. We humans come in all shapes and sizes… and sounds. I’ll see everything from a young mother, exasperated and trying to sneak in a snack amidst tending to an infant, to an elderly man, limping heavily, favoring an old injury. He doesn’t seem to be in any pain, but his movements are jarring nonetheless. I wonder about his life story. How many times did he fall in love? Did he ever carry a weapon in a war? Did he know his father?
That takes up the morning, and maybe into mid-afternoon. If I get into writing a new article, time generally goes by the wayside. (Though, I wrote this one around midnight when the idea struck.) Then, usually, it’s into the woods or somewhere that has nature and trails for a hike. I put on a podcast or audiobook and wander. Then, back home.
After a bit of food, there may be a film to watch. If I have voiceover work to do, that’ll get some attention. I might even edit a few more articles, depending on the mood. A YouTube interview of interest could get checked off the list. Otherwise, a bit of reading and thinking and… that’s enough.
I know that I could be more productive. I could be more structured with my time, and slot in an hour for language study, like I’m always thinking about. I could take up martial arts again. I could get involved with a local theater company and do some more acting, or stage crew work. There have been stretches of time in my life when days were very long, and I was very exhausted from work. I love that, for a time. But it inevitably reverts to this default structure, covering the essentials… and I do believe that it is enough.
Solvitur ambulando