Establishing rhythm for a simpler and happier life.

We wake up knowing what the day will bring us, we know about the moments of rest that we can take and the exciting adventures that we can experience. There is a rhythm to our days that fills our lives with excitement and contentment, allowing us to feel calm and at peace with ourselves.

So many of us feel like life is rushing past us and that we are in a constant rush to catch up with all the things that need doing. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We can live a simpler and slower life. We can live lives that are nourishing to our souls and fill our cups so that we have more joy and love to give others. But to live simpler lives and have the breathing room that we so desperately need. We need to implement a rhythm to our days.

What is rhythm?

Rhythm is the flow that you have in your day. Unlike a schedule, it is not tied to any commitments that you might have in your day or dictated by a clock. It is more organic, think of the rhythm of the seasons. Everything flows into one another and when we have an early spring we often also have an earlier summer. But slowly everything evens out and by the time the next spring comes around it is all back to normal.

A rhythm will provide you with recurring activities and special moments throughout the day. For example, having a cup of tea with a biscuit halfway through the afternoon. The exact time can differ depending on the day since it always follows whatever activity you’re doing during the early afternoon. But you know that about halfway through the afternoon you can look forward to a cuppa and a biscuit.

Just like the sun rising and setting you will fill your days with activities and moments that come one after another without any hard and fast rules.

Creating your own personal daily rhythm

So how do you start to create a rhythm that allows you to enjoy life more fully? You will start to start as simple and small as you can. Because to establish a rhythm properly you will want to gradually introduce the different aspects of it.

An easy way to do this is by starting with your meals. Your breakfast not too long after waking, your lunch halfway through your day and your dinner towards the end of your day. (If you already have these moments set throughout your day you are already one step ahead, so congrats.) This will divide up your day and once you’re used to the rhythm of regular meal moments you will be able to add small things before and after your meals.

Try and alternate more stressful or busy moments with more calming or joyful moments. This way you will feel more balanced throughout the day. So if at one point in your day you tend to do some general house chores like doing dishes or tidying up, then also take some time to relax and do something enjoyable.

This is also where you can enjoy one of the greatest benefits of a rhythm. Because unlike a schedule you don’t have to stop yourself because the clock says it is time for the next activity. You can continue whatever activity or moment you are in until you are ready to transition to the next activity or moment.

A rhythm will allow you to stay in your flow while also giving structure to your days.

Our 24/7 home educating family rhythm

Since our family work from home and also home educates our lives rely very heavily on our daily and weekly rhythm. So if you or your family regularly needs to commute between work and or school you will want to take that into consideration for your own rhythm.

Morning

After my morning routine, the kids are woken up and start getting washed and dressed. Once everyone is ready we can have breakfast together while we talk about our dreams of the last night.

After breakfast, we do our group morning lesson followed by the kids their individual lessons.

Often by the time, it is about midday I tend to prepare some lunch while the kids enjoy some “telly and snack” time. Which is when they get some fresh fruit and watch a Gaeilge show. This helps them to learn Irish since neither my husband nor I speak Irish ourselves.

Afternoon

After our lunch, we all enjoy some time outdoors. Climbing trees and running around or caring for our plants in the garden.

Often after our time outside, we like to spend some time on our different projects that we have going on.

Once we start to feel a bit peckish we have some rest time where we all have a cup of tea and a biscuit. We all have some quiet time while we enjoy our tea. I tend to read a book and the kids either play a board game or read some books together, currently, the Guinness world book of records is a favourite of theirs.

Evening

Eventually, by the end of the afternoon, we start to prepare some dinner. Either my husband or I take the lead on the preparation of our dinner and the kids either help with the cooking or have some alone time in their rooms.

Lastly, we finish off the day with a story or two on the bed before the kids go to sleep.

So you can see how although we always follow the same rhythm every day, no two days are ever the same. This is because some days our afternoon tea might last only 30 minutes while other days it lasts up to two hours or more. Just like our activities will change according to what we feel like on any given day.

Because establishing a rhythm to your days will give you the structure to feel calm and content, while at the same time allowing enough room for exciting and lively days.