Serious Savoring
A Ritual to Make Sure I Notice
To say it’s busy around here is a major understatement. Work is insane these days as my beloved alternative schools are undergoing a re-organization of sorts. People, myself included, are anxious about the coming changes and yet there is little time to reflect on those changes and what they mean for us personally and professionally when we are teaching students, preparing them for high-stakes tests, navigating all sorts of alternative school student issues alongside our students, attending meetings, and, in my case, preparing for meetings and professional development sessions while driving to all of my sites around the county. Oh, and it is only two weeks until winter break and we have much to do before we get there! I find I am staying late at work and then coming home (exhausted) to all the details that must be embraced to prepare for the holiday season.
Here’s the truth: I just want to drink coffee and write words.
Instead, I must write to-do lists and then, um, actually do the items on the list. I’m trying. I really am.
But, I realized that after November when I finished my rough draft of my first novel while navigating work and home, that I’m a bit tired. I want to savor the December season and I don’t want to lose the beauty and fun all around me because I am rushing through endless to-dos. Yet I know just how easy to rush though all of December.
So, I chose the word SAVOR as my word of the month to bring a bit of focus. To make sure I attend to this word, I am launching a chalkboard challenge! Nearly every morning, I write down one way I can savor a small (or not so small moment) in the day ahead on my kitchen chalkboard. If I forget in the rush (I recognize the irony here), I fill out my chalkboard in the evening with something I did savor in the day or commit to something I will savor in the evening.
I guess the old saying you can’t take the chalkboard out of the career teacher is true!
Here’s how the savoring has been going:
December 1: See photo above. I savored watching the flame of my candle for a full minute. Watching for a full minute felt long - a sure sign I need to slow down! I will say I felt calmer at the end of that minute.
December 2: I had an all-day training. I don’t often take lunch, working through it either at my desk or in the car commuting to my next school. On this day, I took the full hour the leaders of the workshop gave us and savored a long conversation with two of my dear colleagues. We listened deeply to each other and shared words of support. Ah.
December 3: My MIL passed away in March of 2025. Today, I took my dear FIL to a remembrance service the funeral home was having. As the high school choir sang, I savored each note, allowed myself to cry, and remembered my second mother (I met my husband in high school). She loved Christmas more than any person I’ve ever known and listening to those carols felt like I was savoring her memory.
December 4: Friends were in town for just one night! I had to rush home and change and rush out to dinner with them, but before I left, I added to the chalkboard: “Set aside your hectic thoughts and enjoy your time with old friends.” Writing it on the chalkboard centered me to make it so.
December 5: My husband returned from a work trip. I was bone tired from a busy week. I told him I needed to decompress and go to bed early. (Me, asking for what I need? What is happening to me?) So he and my son watched a scary movie I’m too sensitive to watch and I allowed myself a few minutes to color in my adult coloring book before savoring going to bed early on a Friday night.
December 6: I admit it - my Christmas spirit is a bit low this year. I needed to shake myself into a better mood so I asked my son if he wanted to do a little in-person, not on-line shopping. Sure, he said. On the chalkboard: Savor time with Calvin at small shops and go out for a fancy coffee. My mood was much enhanced and I got a few of those to-dos done!
December 7: What should I savor today? Oh, I know. This cup of coffee, the scent of this holiday candle, and these moments reflecting with you.
Are you making time for savoring? Do you need a ritual (like my chalkboard challenge) to help you focus on the little things that can slow moments down so we can better savor them? I would love to read your comments!