Busyness: A Moment of Recentering

Today I am recentering.  The past few months have seen a lot – student staff hiring, professional hiring, preparing training, updating curriculum, reinventing staff development, planning conferences and institutes, and trying to be a good wife, daughter, granddaughter, and friend. I have heard the comments about the world of busyness –not using it as a badge of honour -  but I do think it is okay to take a moment to reflect on the scope and capacity of our world. I do think it is okay, and healthy, to press pause, rewind and reflect, and to appreciate the immense amount of work and life that sometimes feels like a total blur.
 
Tonight as I sat at home curled up on the couch with a tea in hand and chose to focus on updating presentations, reviewing colleagues’ work, responding to my staff’s questions, and preparing to be out of the office, I took a moment to take a break and look at Twitter.  I didn’t expect to be so consumed with the content, and certainly didn’t expect to be (finally) writing another blog post.  I didn’t expect to feel... appreciation.
 
As I scrolled through Twitter I felt an immense amount of appreciation for my colleagues and the incredible work they are doing on their campuses to make their student experience that much better.  One colleague was presenting about storytelling as her institution launches a new, and very impressive, strategic plan. Another colleague was sharing incredible quotes and learning moments from a conference.  Colleagues I will be on faculty with for the Assessment Institute have profiles posted, and I am reminded of how much their work inspires me.  A former student staff was encouraging chatter about what graduates learned at university, and a dialogue about the value of co-curricular learning sparked as a result.  And on top of that, there are four emails in my inbox from colleagues and government groups awaiting a reply to speak with their teams and organizations about my work.  And my husband is constantly finding ways to spend as much quality time together as possible before I leave.  And, and, and.  And this feeling of gratitude and fulfillment is reminding me that the term was busy, and the summer will be busy, but instead of thinking about it as a badge of honour or a deterrent, it can be a moment of recentering.  Of clarity.  Of appreciation. 
 
Repeat after me, when things feel genuinely busy and the summer months speed by like a flash of light: It can be a moment of recentering.