i’ve been hearing “i don’t have time” so much recently. from my own mouth, friends, family, and just people i study around or walk past at uni. and honestly i’m over it.
there is simply no such thing as not having time. if you have time to do any nonessential daily activity, you have time. you aren’t too busy.
i’m just as much of a culprit of this as anyone else. i’ll get too busy and won’t reply to texts from friends or even reach out to them to check in or ask to hang out. but then i will. i may say i’m “too busy,” but every so often i’ll realize i do, in fact, have time and try my best to maintain the social connection.
especially in the recent past, a lot has happened in my life. i’ve forgotten to be communicative and grateful to those i care about. and i will apologize to them when i reach out.
it’s okay to be going through something and to put yourself first. that’s what i have done, and that’s why i didn’t reach out to my loved ones for a while. it’s okay to get overwhelmed and stressed in life and put social connections on the back burner until you feel up to it. and most of all, it’s totally okay to be too busy and not have any time for others.
but it takes quite literally five seconds to text someone to check in on them. it takes 10 minutes on the way to class or work or during a workout to make a call. it takes 1 hour to hang out with them instead of eating a meal alone/on the go or scrolling on TikTok.
and who knows? you may save a loved one’s life. they may be going through a rough patch, and by just sending a text or making a call, they are already less alone. they are reassured that you still care. and, most significantly, they feel loved.
i work for a non-profit organization called Only7Seconds, which advocates reducing youth loneliness by fostering meaningful connections. they celebrate the 7th of every month as “Share Day” — when people purposefully take time out of their day to make a point to check in on loved ones or leave kind notes around their community.
i’m telling you this because i hope you can implement this into your life. even when times are tough, we are overwhelmed, and it gets hard to balance everything, a day dedicated to maintaining healthy relationships can teach us to be more mindful and purposeful with our loved ones. it doesn’t have to be the 7th for you. but i urge you to pick a day every month (or two weeks, whatever timeline works best for you) to reach out to your loved ones.
as someone who has received a simple text checking in during one of the rougher parts of my life, i promise you that it really can help more than you know. so, for this week’s polish, pick a day (or multiple), put it in your calendar, and strive to make a difference in someone’s life. not only will you help them, but going out of your way to do this for others can increase your happiness, too. (i’m doing it as well!)
note: you being busy or not having time should not take away from you taking care of yourself. you being healthy and strong, taking those mental health days, and getting sleep and eating well genuinely promote a better life for you. before taking the time to help your loved ones, please make sure you are loving yourself in all ways possible. you are beautiful and kind and deserve self-care days. you are your number one. so, add a dedicated self-care day to your calendar while you're at it. a day for you to do whatever you please, even when life seems to be throwing every possible curveball in your direction.
well, that’s all from me for this week. i do genuinely hope you took something away from this polish. i’m so proud of you for being who you are and doing everything you do. please be proud of yourself, too.
until next time, so much love,
apuroopa
p.s. publishing this friday night to give you some time to think about this over the weekend and implement it if you want! i’m hoping at least one of you does… and let me know if you do :)