Before my sabbatical began Rick was having a conversation with someone who asked how he thought it would go or what I was planning to do. Something. I don’t remember who he was talking to (was it you?) and I don’t remember what they asked. But I remember what he told me he answered.

He told the person that I would spend the first month of my sabbatical freaking out because I’m on sabbatical and don’t know how not to work. The second month I would relax and enjoy myself. And the third month I would spend freaking out because I was going back to work. I would like to say he has no idea what he’s talking about… but he kind of does.

We’re around the halfway point of my sabbatical so I thought now would be a good time to recap what I’ve been up to.

In the first four weeks…

I spent a week freaking out, a week being sick, a week with my back out, a week being completely aimless and feeling like I didn’t have a basic sense of direction or an understanding of what day of the week it was. Though to be fair the latter isn’t exclusive to sabbatical… I often don’t know what day of the week it is. I worked on but did not complete one embroidery sampler. And I slept a lot. A lot. But I also I went to the art museum and bought a couple of plants. Nothing felt done. Nothing felt fun. Relaxing felt like work. And I only seemed to loosen up on the weekends which makes no sense at all.

In the past two weeks…

Something clicked. A lot of clicks. I started getting up earlier, not as early as when I’m working but still earlier. I started eating healthfully again. I had my yearly physical, I spent eight hours one day replanting, propagating, and doting on my plants, I read two books, I went to the art museum (again), I had drinks with a friend, I learned to macrame, I put together and installed closet organizers, I picked up a couple of new plants and some plant accessories, I scheduled a couple of very exciting coffee meetings, I did yard work, worked on exploring some life happenings in writing,  began giving away decks from my tarot collection to the awesome teens in my life who I feel will appreciate them far more in their hands than I do on a dusty shelf, started a new blog, and I took my first pilates lesson (ouch). I’ve also been told repeatedly that I look really well rested. Maybe because I am?

I feel productive, but in an “I want to” way instead of in a “do I have to” way. I feel like I can conquer the world. But most importantly I feel like I’m learning something. I’m exploring my passions. And those passions are, interestingly enough, leading me straight back down the path that eventually led to me working at Automattic. I feel inspired. I feel proud. I feel like I’m doing something that, if nothing else, inspires me to be a better me.

So month two of sabbatical? I think it’s off to a good start.