I gave myself permission to be free.
Life threw several curveballs at me at once in the past two weeks. A year ago I might not have let that stop my writing at all. This year, I made a conscious choice to step back and put my family ahead of my writing goals for the month. That isn’t to say I won’t pick right up where I left off. The holidays are coming, and I intend to enjoy every minute of family, friends, and fun during the bleak onset of winter here in the Midwest. But I have to write, as long as I’m physically and mentally able.
For the few who noticed, I didn’t even post here last week. That was another conscious choice I made. For the first time in over a year, I didn’t care if my search rank dropped, my traffic slowed, or if I even visited the page myself. It was refreshing and freeing. I doubt I’ll take too many breaks like that, but knowing I could walk away if I need to gave me a greater sense of self-determination.