Hi everyone! Happy new year!
My community entry period is coming to a close soon, which means, hopefully, I can start doing some work soon (key word there being “hopefully!”). These three months have afforded me (lots of) free time, and since I wasn’t supposed to work, this forced me to find meaningful ways to spend my time. Not doing any productive work in the traditional sense has been very challenging for me, and I knew pretty early on in CE that I was going to have to find ways to fill my time that would keep me from ripping my hair out.
Enter: routines. Throughout my life, I’ve always found meaning and peace in practicing intentional routines. You can ask my parents-I’ve always been a creature of habit! Here, time moves so slowly through the day, so leaning in to the rhythms of my routines lets me glide through the day.
In the mornings, I get up, take a B12 (if you don’t take B12, you should start!!), get dressed, and head outside. I load my brazier with charcoal and walk to my family’s home to see if they have hot coals; if they don’t, I continue to my grandma’s house just a minute’s walk away-she ALWAYS has hot coals. I come back, put the kettle on my hot brazier, then brush my teeth. Then I set up my French press with grounds and cinnamon, my mug with creamer and sugar, and, if I’m having oatmeal that morning, which I often do, I set up my bowl of instant oatmeal with oats, peanut butter and honey. If I’m having eggs or a hash for breakfast instead, I prep those ingredients while waiting for my kettle to heat up. Setting up each aspect of my breakfast is almost like a ritual, a meditation, a welcome, peaceful moment of mindfulness at the start of my day. Once everything is ready, I sit out on my porch to enjoy my breakfast. While I’m eating and savoring my coffee, I either read or listen to a podcast. I sip my coffee for quite a while, and let myself enjoy watching the community go about their lives. After breakfast, I often journal for a bit or continue to read. Then I’ll tidy up around my home.
I have other routines throughout my day, but my morning routine is probably most special to me. It is so nice to let my muscle memory take over and float throughout the day. A mentor of mine, Ann, and I used to talk often about the importance of routines and rituals in our lives, the weight that they hold and how they can anchor us in the day. I still feel this way, and perhaps feel that more deeply now! Even something seemingly small, like lighting incense, is a little ritual for me: focusing on the match on the striker-feeling, hearing, and smelling the ignition, holding it up to the stick of incense, and wafting up the first of the smoke to inhale the scent. These small practices are things that help to root me in the now.
With so much free time to fill in my days, and not much to do to fill my time, falling into meaningful routine has helped to keep me from going totally crazy in the village!
Do you have a special routine or a favorite daily ritual? Share it in the comments below!
Reilly in Zambia 