The Season Still Counts

What if you're not behind? What if you've just been living?

Do you remember the episode of Friends where Monica and Rachel lose their apartment to Joey and Chandler in a bet?

Monica moves into the boys' apartment and immediately begins trying to make it feel like home. She rearranges furniture. She organizes cabinets. She fusses over details that nobody else notices. She spends an unreasonable amount of time making a space feel welcoming.

I thought about that this weekend.

Because after weeks of packing boxes, moving furniture, selling a house, attending graduations, celebrating milestones, traveling to visit my 86-year-old mom, and trying to keep up with the beautiful heartbeats who make up my little family, I found myself doing the exact same thing.

Not working.

Not posting.

Not building.

Not growing.

Just creating home.

And somewhere in the middle of it all, a familiar voice showed up.

The one that whispers:

"You should be doing more."

You should be posting.

You should be writing.

You should be building your business.

You should be serving your clients.

You should be making progress.

Maybe you know that voice, too.

The funny thing is that most of us didn't start businesses because we wanted more things to do.

We started because we loved something.

We loved an idea.

A mission.

A community.

A possibility.

We wanted to build something that felt aligned with the life we wanted to live.

We wanted our work to matter.

And then life happens.

A move.

A graduation.

A family milestone.

A season that demands our attention in ways we never planned for.

And suddenly the things we are doing out of love begin competing with the things we think we should be doing out of love.

The business.

The family.

The garden.

The clients.

The community.

The dream.

And somehow we end up feeling guilty no matter where we stand.

But lately I've been wondering if we're measuring the wrong thing.

Maybe the question isn't:

"Am I doing enough?"

Maybe the question is:

"Where is my love being asked to go right now?"

Because creating a home is an act of love.

Showing up for a graduation is an act of love.

Helping a child navigate change is an act of love.

Visiting an aging parent is an act of love.

Planting tomatoes in the garden is an act of love.

Building a business is an act of love.

They all count.

The season still counts.

Even when it doesn't look productive.

Even when it doesn't create a deliverable.

Even when it doesn't fit neatly on a to-do list.

When life gets especially full, I return to a simple practice.

I call it returning to True North.

Not the version that demands more from me.

The version that asks:

What matters most right now?

What needs my attention today?

What can wait?

What deserves grace?

Sometimes the answer is the business.

Sometimes the answer is the people.

Sometimes the answer is rest.

The important thing is remembering that every season doesn't have to hold everything.

If you've been away from your own work lately—your writing, your business, your art, your dream—consider this your permission slip.

You are not behind.

You are not failing.

You have simply been living.

And that season counts, too.