Dear Subscriber First Name,

As we soak in these last days of summer, how might we bring a sense of slowness into the fall? Having left my job in July (as many of you know), slowness is a newly lived theme in my life.

Time passes differently when I’m resting.

On one hand, I’ve found there actually is such a thing as having too much time to think. Going on walks, sharing real conversations with close friends, and reading engrossing books are wonderful ways to give the mind a break when that happens. On the other hand, this time of rest has proven to be an opportunity to observe my impulses to be “productive” as a means for being occupied and feeling some vague sense of purpose. Can anyone relate?

I’m learning to appreciate and reacquaint myself with slowness in a way that’s evolving my relationships with the passage of time, the spending of time, and the sharing of time. When I return to regular work, I hope to carry these learnings with me and adapt work to life, rather than feeling like work is fixed and my life must be malleable. That may be how things were, but that’s not how they have to be.

This line of thinking is also entirely not aligned with the values I was taught growing up, nor the values ingrained in American corporate culture, so I definitely feel some internal and external tension. Thank goodness that Gen Z and Millennials are pushing for cultural change.

I’m excited (beyond!!!) to share that I’ll be traveling to Italy and Denmark this month. In the next issue, I hope to share insight inspired by travel. As always, thanks for reading! 💌

With love,
Haemee

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