Is there anything better than waking up to the morning light peeking through your blinds and knowing that you don’t have anywhere particular to be or anything pressing to do? After a long week of school and work, these are my favourite kinds of mornings. For most, this is what a Saturday or Sunday looks like—for me, it’s Mondays. While most people hate Mondays for the simple fact that they mark the beginning of a new week, I love them for that. My body may ache from a weekend of serving and bussing tables, and my brain may be mush from a week of assignments and classes, but at least I don’t have to do anything on Mondays, other than go to a night class. It’s my day to catch up on TV shows and do laundry—mundane and boring, I know, but when life is as full and busy as it is, a day to do nothing but laze around and do the bare minimum is a blessing.
I like to start my Mondays by waking up naturally—no jarring alarms, no pinging notifications to rouse me, and my blinds are open just a crack to let some light in. I take my time getting out of bed; while I might wake up at 9AM, I won’t make myself get up until I feel ready to face the day. Next is a huge glass of water! I know we all hear it a million times a day, but hydration really is just that important. Given how fast-paced my workplace is, I usually end up going to bed on Sunday night dehydrated and exhausted. While I do tend to chug a metric tonne of water before bed, I still wake up feeling like a dried-out sponge the next day, à la Spongebob on land. Bear with me here, I’m about to be a bit dramatic, but there are few things in life that feel as euphoric as drinking a cold glass of water when you’re beyond thirsty.
After hydrating, I throw my curtains open with literally the most flourish possible—the fact that my dollar store curtain rod hasn’t come off it’s hooks yet or broken from the force of me throwing the curtains open truly amazes me. Next is making my bed; growing up I would rarely bother, now it is an integral part of my wellness routine. Now you may be thinking: Julia, how does making your bed fit into a wellness routine??? And aren’t Monday’s your designated lazy days? Basically put, the state of my room is a reflection of how I’m faring in terms of my mental health—some days are messier than others, but by making my bed (especially on my lazy days) I can at least say that I’ve gotten out of bed and done something that day. What happens after that on my lazy day is entirely up in the air!
If I decide that it’s a leave-the-house kind of Monday, I let myself wear whatever the heck I want. Usually, this involves a comfy sweater and yoga pants, which help me feel at least a little put together. Yoga pants are my concession when it comes to wanting to leave the house in sweatpants but also absolutely not wanting to leave the house in sweatpants (if that makes sense). Now, I know, I know: I shouldn’t be so worried about what other people will think about what I wear or the state of my hair, but I do worry—it’s an unavoidable fact of who I am.
I used to feel guilty about letting my Mondays be so chill and aimless, and even guiltier about letting myself leave my house without looking put-together and at least somewhat polished. When I realized that I was often using this as an excuse not to leave the house—which was having a negative effect on my mental health and wellness—I realized that I had to change the way I was thinking about it and embrace the lazy and frumpy, even if just for the day. In doing so, I was being kinder to myself. Over time, I’ve come to learn that there are different types of productivity and that productivity itself is not a yardstick to use to measure if I’m a good and active member of society. Everyone should be allowed and able to have lazy days without feeling guilt over it. I used to loathe taking a lazy day and would spend most of the time berating myself for it; now, I love and look forward to them.