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On Fridays, we’ll take a breath: See below for some commentary on apparel trends I’m loving or things I’m eyeing, a fun activity to consider, and some food for thought as you enter your weekend 🙂
Quick reminder: With the holidays approaching, I’ll be leaning in to spending time with family and friends and moving to a shorter version of The Root 9 through year-end. I’ll be sharing Motivation on Mondays, What I Learned This Week on Wednesdays, and Food For Thought on Fridays. I’m going to take some of that time back from preparing a shorter newsletter to think about next year, including what is in store for The Root 9 and how I am thinking about evolving it as we approach its anniversary in February 🙂 And, in the spirit of The Root 9, being more present during the holidays, closing the year out strong, and recharging. I hope you are able to do the same ❤️
Food for Thought
Do we prioritize a socially constructed version of celebration over the experiences that actually make us happy?
Yesterday was my birthday. While I felt incredibly blessed that my friends wanted to celebrate with me, I found myself in a bit of a mental tug of war. I had booked a ‘traditional’ birthday dinner reservation because it felt like what I was "supposed" to do, but honestly, I was feeling pretty apathetic about it. So, I canceled it.
In reality, my morning started a bit late, and I realized my ideal celebration involved just fitting in two of my favorite things: working out my favorite muscle group (legs) and eating my favorite seasonal salad (the winter salad from Blue Barn). It sounds silly, but I was actually anxious about asking people to join me for something so low key. I was prepared to just enjoy my salad solo.
My friends ended up coming with me…We sat at Blue Barn for over an hour and a half just hanging out. I went after a lift, was cozy instead of dressed up, and it was perfect. But I was quite unenthusiastic about the day because I let the societal narrative of what a birthday "needs" to be overshadow what my ideal day looked like.
It made me wonder how often we perform rituals (like birthday celebrations) for the sake of the ritual itself rather than our joy. Maybe a celebration is just creating space for the simple moments we find the most fulfilling. This week, I’m reflecting on how to be more vocal about what I actually want and owning that 🙂
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