Out of Chaos an organizing newsletter
The Return of Routine
Every September, I was always given the best excuse to roll my eyes when people would tell me that they were anxious to get back to the grindstone of school, work and a “normal” schedule after a summer brimming with too much travel and vacation. The terrible fate, I thought, of too much vacation.
Well, it seems that I’ve arrived because as lovely as the shore and camps and even the weather have been, I am beyond thrilled to send the little darlings back to school and see a few clients. I am eager to gather up my scattered self and reassemble my life and routines.
The stars say that Sagittarians love to travel, and it’s true. I firmly hold that a change in surroundings can improve us in ways both obvious and subtle. But “re-entry” as the mothers in my neighborhood refer to it, can be tough. I think of us all languishing in the zero gravity realm of summer and then hurtling back down to Earth. It doesn’t have to be quite the Tom Hanks scene but getting back to it takes, as all things I recommend, organization and discipline. Here are The Perfect Daughter’s priorities for a smooth transition this and every autumn:
1) Restore order. Be tough on yourself when it comes to unpacking. Stow beach and camp items. Get a bag out for stuff that won’t fit next summer. Put sunscreens in one basket. Cull the summer clothes and save just a few to cover you these next few warm weeks. Remember, when your physical space is organized, it follows that so too, will be your thoughts. It is always worth the time to clear the decks before you begin a new season.
Resist the urge to buy new clothes for fall until you have really looked at what you have. Pulling out my off-season clothes is like being reunited with long lost friends. And if it’s not, well, I have a bag for that, too…
2) Ease back into your regular sleeping and waking routines. Maybe you’ve been on summer hours, getting up after seven a.m. or so and now, really, you need to get up before six a.m. You’ll probably need to pull back on your bedtime, too, or lose sleep. Maybe you’ve had no schedule at all. Now is the time to create one and an opportunity to make improvements on last year. Whether you’re a night owl or early bird, you will benefit by having a bedtime in mind. When you blow your own set curfew, you had better have a good reason for it. The late, late, late show might not be it.
3) Write it down. We get out of our habits over the summer. So if you want to get back to your habit of exercising three times a week, put it on the calendar. If the kids have forgotten that they are supposed to set the table and take out the recycling, make a chart and post in on the fridge. Habits are easy to lose and hard to integrate, so lay it out so you really are aware of what you want to accomplish. Now, if you developed some good new habits over the summer like running or eating more healthfully, make sure you fold those new habits into your fall routine.
Lastly, breathe deeply. Fall is always full of new opportunities and beginnings. But you can’t take advantage of them if you are still stuck in the summer, so pack it up and enjoy getting back to your life.