Long afternoons are long, but it feels as if time is stretching itself a bit. You’ve been paying more attention to this in recent months, perhaps because things feel a little quieter than they used to, or perhaps because you’re finally noticing how to wake up. Have you ever gotten that feeling that the sun strikes the couch right sometimes, and the whole room feels like it exhaled? That is the mood you picture when you think of a perfect long afternoon. Laughter plays its part as well, but not always loudly. Occasionally, it is a light chuckle at something dumb. It’s sometimes an absurd memory that seems to float up out of nowhere. Leisure and laughter have this sort of hand-holding ease to it, like old friends never really having to justify themselves.
#1 The Sweetness Of Not Rushing
One of the things you’ve learned, mostly by hitting upon it, is that life tastes different when you stop treating each moment as though it needs to be done. Long afternoons are a kind of soft pushback against this way of thinking. You sit a little longer. You take a minute to sip your drink. Perhaps the ice melts into it, and you don’t give a damn. You forget yourself, and the world does not crumble. There is a sweetness to this. A hum under the day that feels like permission.
Before, you thought leisure was something you’d earn. Now you believe it’s a thing you have a pick; even if the beginning is awkward, it is something to choose. At first, it sounds like you need to be doing something. Then your shoulders drop. And then your mind opens out like the sky at dusk.
#2 Laughter In Small, Odd Moments
Laughter has an eerie way of creeping up on you. You’ve laughed at yourself so many times lately, at times in the face of yourself. Dropping the same thing two succession. Forgetting where you left a book you were just holding. And rather than becoming irritated, you find yourself smiling. You believe laughter gets easier when the stakes seem lower.
It pops up in conversations, too. Friends speaking up with their own silly things that happened. Stories that loop into other stories. The conversations have a tendency not to give the details and seem to go on tangents, and somehow, it is the tangents that become the best part. Those are my favorites. They linger. They leave a kind of glow.
#3 Taking Leisure Seriously, Or Not
Leisure is one of those things that everyone says they want more of, but rarely bothers to make sure they have time or that everyone gets it. Even when life isn’t technically busy, it’s a busy life full of errands and email and chores that seem to multiply in your presence when you’re not. But there is a gap between being busy and being fulfilled.
At other times, leisure can seem slightly regimented. A trivial hobby that encourages calm. A slow puzzle. A walk with no destination. Simply pushing one foot ahead of the other while your mind wanders in and out like guests at a serene party.
#4 Staying In A Place That Feels Safe
Every single one of you has your own concept of the optimal spot you want to be, safe in. For some, it’s a literal house that enacts their history for the world inside its walls. For others, it’s a favorite chair, or a sunlit corner where they feel safe and tucked in. At times, there is no place at all; instead, it is a person.
You think you all need that. A place or feeling where the world loosens its hold, and you can loosen the hold of yours. Safety is not solely a matter of locks and hard-walled halls or perhaps a safe and perfect garage where you relive your workmanship. It is also about peace. Of knowing you do not worry about the fear.
#5 Long Afternoons As Mini Retreats
Long afternoons are tiny retreats built in easily during the day if you think. They do not cost anything. They do not involve travel. You can deploy one in the kitchen, backyard, small bordered flanking area, or even in bed, with blankets pulled up just enough. The recipe is simple. A bit of quiet. A bit of curiosity. Something to drink. Something to do or not do. And permission to not rush.
Sometimes you go, bring a book, and end up reading the same paragraph three times, too busy enjoying the stillness. You’ll also occasionally load on music that might be a bit too nostalgic, but feels right in any case. The point is not productivity. The point is presence.
#6 Moments Of Reflection That Come Out Of Nowhere
Slower living has that amusing way of allowing reflective moments that surprise you. All of a sudden, you will remember an old trip or have a vague moment when you think, “Well, what happened to someone you used to know?” Or you grab an object and sense its meaning more so than you anticipated. It happens with sentimental things as well, whether it’s a keepsake or even fingerprint jewelry from Memorials.com that carries a loved one’s influence. They don’t carry these moments in a heavy frame. They just feel real.
Reflection doesn’t always have to take the dramatic turn to a more dramatic look. Now, it simply means a quiet, unaccomplished noticing the life that you have lived and the one alive you are still living.
#7 Letting The Day Be What It Wants To Be
One of the pleasures of long afternoons is when you quit making the day into shape. Certain days are smooth and warm and easy. Others feel a bit scattered. You could make an intention to relax, then be led off course by some trivial pursuit; you’ll need to find your way back out to that thing called rest. It is all part of it.
#8 Small Rituals That Create Unique Afternoons
Everyone has their own afternoon rituals to follow, even if they aren’t aware they have them. Perhaps that is a cup of herbal tea. Perhaps that’s a slow scroll down through old photographs. Some like sitting outside and eavesdropping on the sounds of their neighborhood. Others just love calling someone they love, even if only because they can say “hello” to them.
These rituals lend a kind of heartbeat to the afternoon. A pulse. A rhythm. Pulsing, that way, you slow down everything in the simplest of ways.
#9 Conclusion
A lifestyle that thrives on laughter, relaxation, and good, long afternoons doesn’t mean life is perfect for you. It means you decided to pay attention to those parts of your environment that relax you. The light in the room. The safe place you return to. The little happiness that just sneaks up on you.
