Our Northern Michigan summers are typically filled with activities. Our calendar quickly get filled with beach days, concerts, festivals, boat rides, river trips, farmers markets, camping, backyard barbeques and out-of-town visitors. We run from one activity to another, fitting in everything we can because we know this season is fleeting.
We often measure a successful summer by how many projects we finished, how many places we visited or how many activities we checked off the bucket list. But maybe we should measure it differently.
What if summer wasn’t about doing more, but noticing more?
Northern Michigan has a way of inviting us to slow down. But we must accept the invitation. The breeze doesn’t hurry, the lake doesn’t rush, the sunset takes its time. The beauty around us reminds us of and calls to us to appreciate its presence.
Here are some prompts to help in your quest for summertime slowdown:
· Take a walk without your phone.
· Feel the warm sand between your toes.
· Sit on the beach for a while after you’ve finished swimming.
· Close your eyes and listen to the wind.
· Slowly breath in the fresh air.
· Listen to the waves.
· Strike up a conversation with someone while you are in line for ice-cream.
· Chat with the local bookstore or coffee shop owner.
· Go watch the sunset and stay a while after.
· Take the backroads home.
· Take a quiet paddle across the lake before anyone else is awake.
· Sit on the porch and look at the stars.
· Skip the agenda and follow the shoreline.
· Stop at that farm stand you have driven past all summer.
· Notice the wildflowers blooming along side the road.
· Save room to wonder, to play, to explore and to be curious.
Summertime isn’t about the places we visit, but the connection we make with ourselves, nature and others along the way. One of the greatest gifts of slowing down is what it gives back to us. These simple moments, like watching a sunset, feeling the breeze, listening to the waves or making a connection- don’t just make for a memorable summer, the nourish our mental health, deepen our gratitude, offer moments of joy that energize us, and remind us that true mental wellness can be found in some of life’s quietest moments.
These moments ask for nothing but our attention. Northern Michigan doesn’t need us to hurry through it. It has beauty that has been here long before us.