Holidays and the art of transformation

I'm back! The holiday was, as expected, deliciously indulgent and relaxing, think evenings on the balcony sipping wine and wandering along the sea front as the sun went down, bliss! While I was away I picked up some design inspiration and have since transformed my dining room into a mellow blue paradise, a bit like the one below, by painting an old dresser, having some holiday snaps blown up onto canvases and giving my new lantern, that I purchased in Greece, pride of place on the sideboard where I keep my cookbook library. But my house is not the only thing transformed from having a good break.

Getting away from your life is simply amazing for seeing things with fresh eyes and with a bit of perspective, particularly if the biggest demands on you are to reach for water from your sun lounger or decide which one of the, all delicious sounding, dishes you will sample that night. So much so that I have decided I need to holiday much more for my own mental health! Having uninterrupted thinking time is a real luxury that we never really seem to have much of at home, dashing from one place to another and always inundated with information. It was blissful to be out of the reaches of news, where you feel like the whole world is no father than what you can see around you.

For me being away has made me realise that I am generally on the right path so that's a good thing. I've made some tweaks to my work load and have decided to be firmer with myself on my hours so as not to over work too much (the freelancers peril!). With this fresh mindset I have decided to make a note of the things that came to mind as important while I was away. It is so easy to let those things slip away as other, more noisy, demands come to the fore. But it's these little moments where you grab what is important to you that really make a difference. They build up to form a life. I have realised that by taking days for writing and doing more in church, by making my work work for me, that I have really discovered that fact. I'm not giving that time back if I can help it! I've now taken a permanent part time job as a long term move towards that and a vote of confidence in the decisions I've made this year. I just hope now that I have such happy reflections when I'm next on the sun lounger!