I’m a wanderer and a risk taker, and I love adventure. But lately, I’ve been enjoying repetitions around how I spend my time. These are the top ones.
Rereading Books
I’ve read about seven books so far this year, and four of them are re-reads. I’ve read them before and now I’m reading ’em again. I think it’s a few reasons why this works, but the biggest is because: where you are in life when a read a book makes a difference. Age, of course, but also what’s been heavy on your mind.
For instance, I read Get Good with Money by Tiffany Alichie twice. The first time, I was curious to see what tips and tools I could pick up. The second time, I’d already implemented a lot of her tips and tools already so I could go deeper that time around. And every single time I read Their Eyes Were Watching God, or The Color Purple—my top two favorite books—something stands out to me that wasn’t as noticeable the last times I read it.
And rereading don’t require the same level of energy or focus as the first time you read it, so it’s more relaxing. Your mind ain’t wondering what will happen because you know. Same for rewatching movies and tv series, too.
Revisiting Cities
I love seeing new places, but sometimes I wanna get away without being fulla action. Visiting cities I’ve already been to always me to do that. I think I also build relationships in those communities when I revisit rather than just having one-off conversations with folk from one visit. I don’t revisit all places, but either cities I love or ones where people I love live—Oakland, New York, Philly, Charleston, Jacksonville, etc.
This way, I already know which restaurants I love. I don’t have to see all the sites because I’ve seen ’em before, which allows me to go deeper into the city and get to the gems that tourists often miss. And FOMO (fear of missing out) don’t hit as hard, so I can leave longer blanks in my schedule…to just chill or wander. I have so many examples, l but I’ll share how revisiting Philly blessed me big.
I first visited Philly around 2017 to interview Ms. Madie Underwood for Krak Teet. Went back in 2019 with a friend to try some restaurants. Enjoyed it but knew there was more to see. Went back in 2021 for an event at the Colored Girls Museum. Met Andrea, a dope photographer and owner of The Museum of Black Joy. We swapped Instagrams. She reached out months later and invited me to Oakland with her and some of her Philly folk. I also invited Rae, a Zora scholar who I knew from Instagram, and it was our first time meeting in person.
Four benefits there: I now knew more Philly folk, now knew Oakland folk, me and Rae’s friendship went to another level, and I fell in love with Oakland. It was my second time in Oakland, and I loved both times for different reasons, so I decided to keep visiting there too. Earlier this year, Andrea connected me with Misty Sol, a Philly painter and owner of Tiny Farm Wagon. Misty needed someone to teach oral history to Upward Bound students. I taught ’em virtually then went to the students’ banquet last Thursday to meet ’em in person. I was invited to a party fulla artists and nonprofit owners that night. My Philly tribe expanded again. Misty gifted me a deck of her culture keeper tarot cards. I pulled one the next morning and got “Wissahickon.” Looked it up, called a Lyft, went, and got so much of what my spirit needed.
Repeating Morning Routines
“Don’t be surprised that I have suddenly taken to the woods. I hate routine.” —Zora Neale Hurston
I couldn’t agree more. Yet, I need routine. Maybe because I’ma Pisces. Or because I’ma free-spirited wanderer. Without routine though, I end up slumping into unhealthy habits. Mixing up my routines was a big aha moment. For instance, GirlTREK taught me that walking just 30 minutes a day can save your life. Sometimes I walk in my neighborhood, the beach, a park, or a nature trail like Wissahickon or Skidaway Island State Park. I’ve started suggesting walking together instead of brunching when me and a friend wanna catch up. I also mix up my routines based off where I am in my womanly cycle. I got the idea from this graphic, which I regretfully don’t recall who made it.
Routine Social Media Breaks
A few times a year, I take a social media break. It’s an addiction, so I have to uninstall it from my phone. Otherwise, I end up scrolling for a couple minutes before I even realize I’m doing it. I usually break around my birthday in March and again at the end of the year. In between that, I just do it if I need it…like now. I got off after the Krak Teet 4 Kids Summa Camp ended and I plan to stay off for at least a month but maybe two.
Alice Walker spoke on the importance of taking a break from the noise so you can hear your own spirit. That’s the biggest reason there. The most noise in my life comes from screens. Another reason is to keep capitalism in check. It has a way of taking something fun and turning it into labor. I get many and plenty laughs from social media, make money there, made some bomb connections with folk, learn a lot there, but it can be stressful too. Painful posts are up and down the feed, and keeping folk engaged on your page takes work. With that, breaks are essential.
