When was the last time you had the summer off? I’ll assume that, like me, you had just received your learner’s permit somewhere in the first half of high school. I haven’t had 10 weeks off in a row since I was in high school, let alone the whole summer. That was two decades ago. Hell I haven’t had more than 2 weeks in a row off since college winter break.
Between junior and senior year of high school was the last time I played organized baseball, which until then, had consumed the majority of my free time and thought. For my high school affiliated American Legion team, I hit something like 8 triples (summer means no fences in the northeast for all the field sports to share the space) in 15 games that summer. I pitched for the first time since I was 9 (a great athletic regret would be why I didn’t pitch throughout my youth) and struck out 5 batters in 6 innings of work. I also gave up a bomb, but it was to my step-cousin - so I can’t be mad at that.
Now I’m 37 and just wrapped up a summer to my own devices - I can’t be the only one who always wished they had more time, who would do things differently if they could just get a breather from work. Thankfully, I just did.
Here’s what I learned after more than two months off as a thirty-seven year old, physician, husband, and man:
Time Waits for No Man
The summer of 2023 is waning now. It will never come back. You will never have the time back. You will never have the advantages of youth on your side: you will never be younger than you are right now. “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is now.”
Currently, there are no known methods to stop senescence. I can already tell that my body does not respond the same as it did 5, let alone 10, years ago to things like variations in diet, exercise, and sleep quality. Everything takes more time to reclaim as we age. And there is the challenge, time is finite. Options of spending your time are unlimited. Invest your time wisely. Or as Sam Harris has said: “Attention is the cash value of time. Everything is valuable only to the extent of how much attention you could pay to it.” X is only as valuable as the attention you pay to it.
Sunshine is Special
Not having to pray for sunshine in between night shifts, enjoying my time outdoors, less time forcing a tan and I’m sure my skin will thank me for that.
Prioritize Relationships
In spite of our own frustrations with IVF failures/challenges early in the summer, we have never been stronger as a partnership. We have continued to invest time in our shared vision for us in the present and the future. It is starting to pay off.
Save Your Money
I haven’t gotten paid. I am not working a contract, that’s how it works. Save your money! Otherwise this lifestyle can be a nightmare and not a personal improvement summer. We don’t live paycheck-to-paycheck, we have no debt, our cars are paid for, our housing is reasonable, and we are aligned on what is and what is not worth spending money on.
Sleep is Golden
I’ve never been an easy sleeper, a good sleeper. I shudder to judge so harshly, but it’s the truth. This summer, even with my mild baseline insomnia, I have woken up to an alarm less than a handful of times - most of those only to catch early flights. It has been remarkable how enjoyable it is to leave your phone in another room. I have nothing to think about besides sleeping my fill and then starting my day.
I drink less now than I used to - likely a product of having less to prove and fewer “party” friends. But a positive externality of less drinking is better sleep as well. But I am no teetotaler.