Lately, I've been spending a lot of mornings on my deck with a cup of tea, taking in the birdsong, listening to the sprinklers, and breathing in all the scents of early summer while my dogs nap nearby.
It's not how I typically spend June.
Normally, summer arrives and I immediately slip into a familiar rhythm of trying to fit everything in. More work, more adventures, more social plans, more projects, more memories before the season disappears.
By August, I'm often running on fumes and wondering where summer went.
This year feels different. Some recent significant changes have forced me to slow down and take an honest look at my capacity. A season of grief, transition, and exhaustion left me needing more quiet, more solitude, and more rest than usual.
At first, I resisted it. Like many creative people, my natural tendency is to keep moving. My mind is rarely short on ideas. There is always another project to start, another hobby to pursue, another place to visit. But when your energy becomes limited, you begin to realize that not everything deserves a yes.
So I've been making some changes. Creating more space in my schedule, spending more time in my art studio (yay!), and learning how to say no. I'm discovering how yummy it can be to "miss out" on things. Perhaps most importantly though, I've been giving myself permission to move through my days at a slower pace, and the surprising thing is that I've started to feel more fulfilled doing less.
The Unexpected Gifts of Slow Living
One of the most special things I've noticed about slowing down is that smaller moments begin to carry more meaning. When we're rushing from one thing to the next, life can become strangely blurry. We move through beautiful places without really seeing them, we check things off our list without fully experiencing them.
But when there is more space, something shifts. Discovering a new trail to walk my dogs becomes the highlight of my day, drinking my tea while barefoot in the garden feels like a luxury, and eating dinner on my deck feels like a prayer of gratitude for my day.
Recently, I stumbled upon a rare patch of white lupines while exploring a trail and it became one of the most memorable moments of my week.
That feels important. Because I think many of us are craving more presence, even if we don't always realize it. We're searching for ways to feel more connected, more grounded, and more alive in our own lives. Sometimes the answer isn't adding more. Sometimes it's creating more space so we can begin to embody our own lives in a bigger way.
Why Rest Fuels Creativity
One of the biggest surprises of this season has been how closely creativity and rest seem to be connected.
For years, I believed that creativity came from doing more. More experiences, more inspiration, more effort. But lately I've been discovering that some of my best ideas arrive when I'm doing almost nothing at all - while drinking tea on the deck, on a hike through the forest, or while sun bathing by the river.
It seems like the more spaciousness I create, the more creative inspiration seems to emerge naturally. Not because I'm trying harder, but because I'm finally quiet enough to hear it. As both an artist and a yoga teacher, I've become increasingly convinced that creativity doesn't thrive under constant pressure. Turns out it thrives in presence, in curiosity, and when we leave enough room in our lives for wonder to find us.
The Wisdom of "Chop Wood, Carry Water"
A phrase that keeps returning to me lately is:
Chop wood, carry water.
It's a Zen proverb that reminds us that peace, mastery, and meaning aren't found in reaching some future destination, they're found in the simple act of showing up for what is right in front of us.
I think that's what this season is teaching me: to stop waiting for life to begin, to stop rushing toward some future version of myself, and to stop treating ordinary moments as obstacles standing between me and happiness.
Because increasingly, it seems that the ordinary moments are the point.
Creating More Space This Summer
If you're feeling overwhelmed, stretched thin, or disconnected from your own life, I wonder what might happen if you experimented with creating just a little more space.
Not some dramatic reset or overhaul of your entire lifestyle...maybe just a little more room. And that can look simpler than you think. Maybe it's going for a walk without your phone, or making a point to sit for 5 minutes to watch the sunset each evening, or a creative project pursued simply because it brings you joy.
The irony is that slowing down often allows us to experience more of life, not less.
For me, creating more spaciousness has felt like slowly expanding into my own life...almost as though I'm taking up more room within it.
And with that room comes presence and creativity. And with a littel more of each of those comes the feeling that perhaps I'm exactly where I need to be.
If themes of slow living, seasonal creativity, nature, and mindful living resonate with you, I'd love to stay connected.
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-Kiana
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