I hope your holidays were/are delightful! I spent mine laying around my parents’ farmhouse, ‘grammin’ photos of a mild rural Central PA winter, working, and eating an obscene amount of cheese.
After a seriously pleasant few days back on the farm, we rolled into Philly late Saturday afternoon. Upon opening the car door to unload many bags and many (ok, just two) cats, city smells and and sounds and air assaulted my senses. Within five minutes, I had a rip-roaring headache and was starting to get whiny. I was missing the clean air and clear head that I’d left behind three short hours earlier.
So, just in case you’re having a rough time transitioning back to the real world after holiday travel, this is what worked for me. Behold, a recipe to feel like a new person.
Ingredients:
- 2 hours
- 1 steamy bath
- a makeshift teabag out of cheesecloth, filled with lavender & cedar shavings
- Trader Joe’s Lavender Sea Salt Scrub
- 1 Anthropologie Volcano candle
- 2 hot toddies
- 3 glasses of ice water (the steam and hot toddies will dehydrate you; be sure to drink plenty of water!)
- magazine and/or book of choice — mine were Frankie & When I Was a Child I Read Books
- Emily Wells’ Mama Acoustic Recordings on repeat
- a clean & tidy bedroom to retreat to upon leaving the bath
Prior to this, I think the last time I took a bath was probably the day I got married. Five and a half years ago. So it was high time I get reacquainted with reading in a steamy tub, all alone. It was glorious. I felt like a whole new person after emerging from my steamy solitude, and it’s set the tone for this whole week. Calm. Easy. Low pressure.
This episode aside, I’m mostly spending this quiet week working. The week between Christmas and the new year is a beautiful pause. It feels a little like time has stopped and there’s room for recalibration before really diving back into the everyday tasks. How are you filling this time?
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