Afternoons

Sleeping after lunch during weekends is a high treat for me. These days, it often takes place after cooking a full meal. I am very much free these days, especially since earning my MS degree. And the series of high, self-delighting activities is waking up at three and getting my second round of coffee.

Waking up at three in the afternoon on a Saturday while knowing I have nothing to accomplish is like being a kid and somewhat free again. I am fully aware of my surroundings and more attentive to the needs of my insides that demand time, such as reading, writing in my daily journal, and processing the challenges and small wins.

I miss this headspace. When I was still working on my MS degree while keeping an 8-to-5 job, there was always a deliverable in mind that needed completion, either from work or school. But mostly are essays I drafted prior and needs more words and tightening.

I miss how raw and involved I was as a student. But I think I missed this more, and I would want to enjoy this vacancy while nearing the next hump.

Over a week ago, I joined two workmates in a project monitoring at Brgy. Muritula, San Luis. We profiled our farmer-partners in the morning, then entered the woods in the afternoon to visit the plantations funded by our program. The weather that afternoon could not be more perfect. And the inside of the forest and the rivers we crossed barefoot were patches of a beautiful afternoon picture that is still thriving in my head.

Afternoons, past 2 PM, are exquisite when we do not have much to do but enjoy them. The same is true in life. We find extravagant satisfaction in everything we do when we don’t allow other uncontrollable factors to undermine our peace of mind.

I recently finished the easy-read Midnight Library by Matt Haig. The lesson is not obsessing over how to go about life but just living it.

Some things only require our presence and nothing more. If not for the other important people in our lives, let us give ourselves the tranquil afternoons we need. It can be as simple as taking the time to write for a blog, washing the dishes, doing the laundry, or playing with the dogs. Life—afternoons—should be easy.