I´ve been back home in Ireland for a full week now, after the holidays; in a few more days, the girls will be here as well. It´s time to start pre-preparing to get back to school...

There´s something that tends to happen to me every year around this time; thankfully, it no longer takes me by surprise: I arrive in Dublin with renewed energy and a mental list of things I want to get done, and I get off to a great start. The first day is the best; it´s fantastic because the to-do list is so long that it doesn´t matter where I start. I always accomplish a lot, and feel that I´m being super productive.

But then, as days go by, I realise that time is faster at passing than I am at crossing things off the list. It starts to become apparent that I´m not going to have enough time to do "everything" (especially when that "everything" keeps growing, as I come up with more things to add to the list), and that´s when I start to feel stressed out.

Now, add that to the fact that the end of the summer is approaching, so I feel like I want to rest and enjoy a little bit more before getting back to the routine (going to see blue and green, for example, as my friend Bea would say), and the list gets even longer... Plus, ¡the weather is so nice these days! Usually, August here in Ireland is not great, but this year is the exception, and we need to make the most of it.

So in summary, I´m running out of time, and there are still pending tasks. But I feel happy regardless. Why? For several reasons:

• Because I was able to cross off a few pending things that were weighing me down, and I feel I´m making progress.
• Because these ups and downs no longer affect me that much, as I know they´re natural in me, so I no longer beat myself up for not being able to achieve the impossible task of finishing an endless list.
• And above all, because I´ve been redefining my concepts of "being productive" and "making the most of time", expanding them to include important things that were not included before.

Leisure activities can also be productive, when balanced appropriately with work. Time spent resting is time well spent. And a chat with friends or a walk in the park are well worth investing an afternoon.

(Photo taken the other day in St. Stephen´s Green)

How about you? How are you "making the most" of these days?