Two Steps Forward, Three Steps Back

Ah, the sweet smell of overwork . . . 

Not so sweet, actually. 

I had my head on straight at the start of the day. Encountered too many high demand situations. The demands wrench me out of balance. It's like a spine out of alignment, corrected by the chiropractor and then wrenched back out by muscles with a memory for dysfunction. 

How do I say no?

Two steps forward, three steps back.

I hang my head. Shake my head. Decide to go to bed and try again tomorrow.

I knew the workload would be brutal this week. I was not prepared for my own aquiescence. My surrender to the path of least resistance.

What is the deal with Americans and our approach to work? I like the European work culture better. Their healthy and balanced approach to life and to work. I hear a lot of talk these days about Gen Z and their insistence on work-life balance. Some criticize them for it. I hear talk about so-called quiet quitting and criticism of those who crave balance. Could it be they spent too much time watching their parents lose themselves to work? Experiencing their parents' unavailability and wanting something different for themselves? 

I'm grieving something I never had. 

Fall-ing In Love: 40 Days of Noticing is a daily writing practice that opens a landscape of discovery into my own human experience.

Katherine Cartwright has been blogging since 2012, and each year brings new wonders. She asks big questions of the small things in life.