1-2-3 Relax.

Why is it that we often tell people that they "need to learn to relax"?  Is relaxation something we learn over the years?  Or is it something innate that we simply forget due to stress and supposed "perfectionism" in the pursuit of success.  To me, I think it's both.  Although organization and productivity are effective and essential skills that we were all taught at a young age in a middle school study skills class by a teacher who should have retired a good 15 years ago (yes, I mean you Mr. Spoonhoward); sometimes, they are taken a bit too far and turn into doctrines to live by.

I confess that I am a follower (not by choice, but rather by habit) of these so-called social precepts of sometimes irrational productive behavior.  Whether it was always striving for that A or buttering my morning toast with just the right proportions of butter-to- jam (maybe a tad bit of obsessive compulsive disorder runs in the family), I found myself continually submitting to perfectionism and productivity as I grew older.  Now, having graduated from college, it is difficult to realize that I no longer need to be productive during these summer months.  All the papers, tests, and applications that I had previously rendered are now graded and complete.  A part of me says, "So what now?  Laura, you've spent the last 18 years of your life working toward "something" with which you will eventually be rewarded if you get optimal grades."  So here I am, in my 22nd year, the summer after my college graduation.  And what is this reward you ask?  After spending 18 years in school, I can proudly say, "I've earned the right to (finally) relax."

But can I please have some help here?  I think I forgot how to do it!

Bisous,

Laura