Vol. 43 - Reading, Summer Cycle

Happy Friday

Good afternoon :)

I’m getting right into it this week. Another week went by, and I don’t feel as accomplished as I want to feel. I assume this is normal, and it’s very difficult to end every week feeling great—but I’m in a cycle that I haven’t been able to break out of.

It’s the middle of the summer, which is a weird time. Everything is dragging along, the excitement of the nice weather is gone, and it all seems to be getting hold. I need to figure out a way to get out of the little slump I’m in.

As I think through a plan to get out of my current state of sleepwalking through life, I've come up with a few things.

• I’ve learned that the way out of this slump is not dramatic. We like to think we need all this stuff to happen and be perfectly aligned for us to become the person we want to be. But the truth is, we just need to be consistent. It isn’t easy, but it’s simple. Our brain tricks us into thinking that if nothing changes right away or we aren’t moving with urgency, nothing will ever change.

• Nobody cares what you have going on because they have their own stuff to get through. Nobody even notices the growth I have or haven’t achieved in the last week.

I just wanted to remind everyone reading this that it is normal to feel stuck or in a slump. I think everybody around us goes through it just as much as we do. Stop comparing yourselves to people online and stay as present as possible in your own little life.

Reading

I need to start reading again. I spend way too much time mindlessly scrolling in the 15-20 minutes I could spend reading something interesting.

There’s something about picking up a book—especially one that’s been around for a long time—that resets you. It’s one of the few things that demands your full attention. No trending sound, no algorithm. Just you and a line of thought that someone, maybe hundreds of years ago, took the time to craft and share.

And it makes you think again. Not in the way a headline makes you react. But actually think. You’re forced to sit with ideas. You might agree, you might disagree, but you’re in a dialogue that stretches beyond your own bubble that you’re in every day. That’s rare in today’s world.

Books don’t beg for your time. They’re quiet. And that’s part of why they matter. When the rest of the world is yelling and fighting for your attention, a book just sits there. You either give it your focus or you don’t. And if you do, it can be very rewarding.

It doesn’t even have to be something deep or philosophical. It just has to stretch you enough that you can feel it. Take you out of the loop. Give you something new to think about.

Update on my dad

He is doing well. He is on steroids, so he’s feeling pretty damn good lately. I’m so proud of him and pumped to see him doing well and moving around again. Even though he’s all jittery and talks a million miles per hour all day… the joy of life is clear in his eyes.

He was able to go to the Twins games this week, being social and getting out of the house. Hopefully, this time on the steroids has given his body the time it needs to recover and the donor cells time to settle down a bit in their new body.

Thank you for all the prayers and well wishes. I’m sure he will update his CaringBridge at some point or post on Facebook.

-Colten