Where do you go when you want to take yourself away from the day’s hustle and bustle? My friend finds that sitting on her stairs is the calmest place to be. I’ve noticed that my daughter does this sometimes too as she said that it’s a nice place to think.

I tried taking a moment in the car today! I popped out after work to run yet another errand for the family – a prescription collection – and was feeling a bit overwhelmed from the stresses of the day. As I was about to buckle up and drive home, I paused and thought… What if I don’t go home right now? I stopped for a moment and everything felt still.

I remember my friend telling me that she’d sat in the car the other day before going back into the house as it felt quiet, she felt happy, and there was no mess. I recall this myself once between getting off the train and rushing to the after school club 10 plus years ago.

I took a few deep breaths and felt the calmness start to kick in. I remembered the recording that another friend had kindly created for me a few months ago and switched it on.

Listening to the words unfold gave me around 15 mins of blissful me time. Although I wasn’t trying to think of anything whilst sitting there with my eyes closed, I tried to recall a time when I was just ‘being’ instead of ‘doing’. My mind was going from the past to the future and back to the present again.

I opened my eyes at the end of the recording and it felt good that no one had physically interrupted me or called me on the phone. I noticed that I had no signal on my phone. It was a semi-busy car park but everything felt quieter and calmer. After this 15 mins of calm I felt in a much better state.

I thought about my next task of the evening which was cooking dinner and then facing the other chores. I drove home and entered the house a lot calmer. I prepared dinner a bit slower than usual; cutting and chopping and not thinking about the next steps.

This experience showed me that I don’t need to create a room at home to relax, instead I can just take a moment anywhere and at any time.

How do you take a moment to yourself and what impact does it have on your day?

Until next time…

Sandra