When you really pay attention, anything can be an invitation to rest

Everyday moments hold the potential to resist the grind. From the little pause that lives in between a deep, deep breath to the attentive embrace of a warm cup of coffee. A bit of mindfulness allows you grasp that moment, offering a sanctuary amidst the chaos.

In the rhythm of our bustling lives, the flickering of a candle or a fleeting glance at the nature happening right outside your window 🌿 can serve as gentle reminders to reclaim our peace and alignment. But we have to pay attention. And that's hard when there's so, so much happening in our world, in our lives and the lives of those who love us.

We have to do a little extra to make room for rest.

Ten days remain of the month of Ramadan, and I need to make a little more room for the virtues I want to see more of in my life and behavior. So I added an extra week of rest to our company calendar. I'm trying to make room.

I read somewhere about the importance of preparing the soil prior to planting the seeds that I hope to grow. I literally imagine my hands combing through the dirt when I think about what it means to make room for what I'm seeking more/less of in my life.

In my weekly planner, I wrote down how I'm going to make room: prioritization & grace, Quran & prayer, and planning & decluttering.

Prioritization & Grace. The notion of "ruthless prioritization" doesn't feel good to me; it leaves little margin for error and grace for the busy dad, husband, business owner, son, brother, creative, tired life that I live. As I think about the long list of things undone, spilling over from previous weeks, I'm going to focus on more careful prioritization. And when time starts to pinch (as it inevitably will) I'm going to show myself a little more love and grace and simply …try again. Until it's all done-ish.

Quran & Prayer. The month of Ramadan is the month of the Quran. It's the month in which it was revealed to the Prophet Muhammadﷺ and he would recite it with Angel Gabriel end-to-end throughout the course of his life during the month. Muslims emulate this throughout the days of fasting and in their night prayers, striving to gain proximity to its callings. I'm a little behind on my reading, so I'll use this short break to spend more time with the Quran and deepening my prayer through it, God-willing.

Planning & Decluttering. Keeping it a whole buck with you, a little practicality and simple tidying up goes a long way in helping me feel a sense of accomplishment at the end of a week devoted to resting. So I'll spend some time thinking ahead, journaling and talking to Lany and the kids about what we're envisioning for ourselves, our livelihood, and you all (our customers and peers in the journey to more rest). I may clean my office a bit and we've already started clearing out our closets for donations.

We'll also do some deep cleaning around the house with some lemon 🍋 and cinnamon, burn some bakhoor , and rotate the plants around to top it all off. (That way, if none of the above gets done, it'll at least smell/look like we accomplished something 😬 #adultingprotip).

So are you paying attention? What does “preparing the soil” look like for you?

Share with us how you're trying to make more room for rest by following Tinycup on Instagram.