An Ode to Easeful, Slow Living
I sit on a chair in the cool downstairs with the door open to the hot summer air. I’ve just stepped outside and it feels like I entered into the dryer with the dry breeze blowing.
I’ve spent the morning organically and frequently shifting between sitting outside to read, working on my laptop, and tending to other tasks around the home.
Summer is my favourite season.
It’s carefree. Joyful, vibrant and playful.
It’s for relaxing, vacation, splashing in water at the lake, camping in forested parks, and grabbing ice cream after a full day.
What’s not to love?
I look down at my computer screen, the theme of this month’s blog mirroring back to me: rest, rituals, Easeful & Slow Living.
As I crafted a visual mood board on my computer, I felt it would be better to bring a flow of words together, more like prose, this month, instead of a stuffy and formal essay.
Because to me, easeful and slow living is a way of being.
It’s not a checklist to complete on a Wednesday at 4pm. It flows from the morning into the sun-kissed evening, serene, peaceful and with grace.
There isn’t one thing you “do” to arrive into ease. But slowing your days certainly helps.
Perhaps you just got back to the office after a week of vacation or have family coming down in a day to prep for. The usual “tasks” and “list” carries on. It doesn’t stop because it’s July.
This is where you come in.
What energy are you currently bringing into your days? Right now. This week. Has there been a pushing through, a forcefulness, a dread, or a hurry up and relax?
It starts with simple switches; something you might miss.
Taking the morning cuppa outside in the sunshine, letting it stretch out slowly.
Pausing to read your book when work is slow.
Going for a walk outside.
Looking up delicious and fun new recipes to try in the evenings.
Playing a game outside on the deck with a loved one instead of flicking on the tv.
We think these contributing factors are no big deal, but when they string together, they create a beautiful impact on how our day feels.
When we pause, we’re telling our body that it’s safe to go slow. That it’s safe to move unhurried. That it’s safe to unwind.
Gripping rarely brings us closer to where we want to be: calm, at peace, relaxed, at ease, grounded.
So, what energy are you bringing into your days right now? And how could you offer yourself even 10% more softness?
For me, it will be swapping the phone for a stack of library books, my seat outside in the sun instead of the rolling office chair, removing the majority of “things” in my day so there’s vastness and spaciousness, getting to the water most days of the week, making big bowls of dinner salads stored in the fridge, and choosing what pleases me over the “shoulds”.
And perhaps the biggest piece of all?
Permission. In order to live an easeful and slow life that you love, it starts with giving yourself permission. And maybe, just maybe, the permission you’ve been waiting for has been within you all along.
So, what does my soft, slow, easeful summer look like?
I LOVE creating mood boards, especially for the summer + Cancer season, so if you’re feeling inspired to shift the energy of your day-to-day - I couldn’t recommend it more.
→ Canva collage template + Pinterest photos and some finagling to get them into a layout that feels right. When you choose your photos, let them choose you. You’ll feel an aliveness or spark when you see them.
This mood board isn't another thing to do. It's simply one way I'm giving myself permission to choose the kind of summer I want to live.
Here’s a link to mine if you’re nosey like I am. 😊
Happy joyful, simple, soft summer to you. 🤍
x Jessie
