It's all about Perspective

As an oversubscriber to the cult of "Doing", I wasn't dealing well with my inactivity, and a future summer of fun that had in an instant turned bleak.  My weeknights and weekends are always non-stop.  In fact, I'm probably always on the brink of exhaustion because I try to fill every day to the limit.  For a snapshot:
Monday: AM row / PM home
Tuesday: AM SpeedX gym / PM yoga
Wednesday: AM row / PM home
Thursday: AM sleep in til 8! / PM Kickball then drinks
Friday: AM SpeedX gym / PM out
Saturday: AM row / all day beach volleyball
Sunday: football, any other outdoor activity  

During my first few days on the couch (just after the accident and before surgery) I was already struggling with how I was going to survive the months ahead.  Turning from tv to computer screen and back again, I couldn't conceive of another hour of idle time, alone on my couch.  Then I stumbled on this little Pinterest pin which did wonders to reshape my perspective. 

This is a detour.  That's all this is.  The world is not ending, I'm not out of sports for good, and it's only one summer that's going to be affected.  This one little quote reframed my mindset away from "end of the world" to I'm fortunate to only have a detour to travel along.

This quote and perspective helped me define and establish my "rules for recovery" which I'll get to in a later post.   It might sound silly to apply a framework to healing and idle time, but I've found it super useful when little things become overwhelming.

I'm also finding ways to "Do" while "Not Doing".  For instance, I've never been good at painting my own nails.  But now, I've figured out how to push chairs out on my balcony, get some fresh air, and paint away with no worry of running out of time for the nails to dry.  It's also been way too long since I read books consistently.  I didn't realize how much I've missed the  stimulation of a good book (and I'm taking recommendations!).

While I'm on indefinite pause from all the activities I love and identify with, I'm finding ways to explore new interests, and enjoy the downtime that I've been given.