My slow summer routine and what I’ve learnt

My 2026 slow summer routine deepened my connection with creativity and helped me slow down the fast speed train in my head.

Summer in the Polish countryside

My summer routine was driven by trust in the process and my creative self (some people call it creative instinct or intuition I call that one-of-a-kind connection creative self), which resulted in a routine that calmed my overstimulated mind, body and soul after a very busy and a dare say fruitful academic year (2025-26). (My year starts in September and lasts until July, when the school year ends for kids and universities break for the summer as I currently work part time at one of London’s universities.)

Every summer I set up camp at my parents’ country house to have the breathing space I need to engage with creativity and creative expression.

Every summer is different, so is my routine. This year, this is exactly what I did to allow clarity and slowness of the summer days fill me in:

- I drank my morning matcha in the garden. In between the sips I read a few pages of a book. Muffin the cat usually joined me for the morning cuddles. She liked the quiet moments we shared before the world woke up.

- After I was done with the reading, I wrote in my diary, nothing too complicated or complex just some random and unrelated thoughts, ideas, and blog titles.

- When my matcha finished it was a clear sign that it was time to make my way to the garden for the morning harvest picking only what I needed for the day. (I also got into the habit of leaving plenty of food for the wildlife.)

- Back at home I made a smoothy or breakfast. For a smoothy I only used the fruits picked from the garden.

- At 9.00 am I officially started my work (all those activities mentioned above took place before 9.00 am as I like getting up early).

- After finishing work, I had early family dinner. (I did snacks in between breakfast and dinner on fruits, veggies and dark chocolate.)

- Before my evening walk, I checked in the garden and picked fruits and veggies I didn’t in the morning. (I only had very short window of time for harvest as it was either getting too hot, which meant that wasps were everywhere or cooled down enough for the mosquitoes to come out in the evening.)

- If I had to do any shopping, I usually went to the general store or a bakery in the village. However, I intentionally decided to spend as little money as possible, which meant fewer trips to the shop or a nearby town.

The process was really interesting to observe as even two weeks away from the business of the city and everyday life can be refreshing and rewarding creatively, artistically and financially. (I do believe that being financially secure, literate and aware is part of building a long-term sustainable creative art practice and I’ve written about this topic extensively over the years.)

What have I learnt following the routine:

- The repetition and simplicity of all those actions offered me the brain and breathing space I can’t often access when I’m in London immersed in the city’s noise. Even if I’m not hustling the city gest overwhelming.

- It’s been years since I had so many writing ideas. I heard words and titles for my posts, which was very exciting and invigorating for my writer’s brain.

- I didn’t have the need to fill up my time with mindless scrawling or listening to podcasts.

- I trusted my creativity more as we could have clear and open conversations without any noise getting in the way.

- My eating habits changed as well and I ate much less and simpler foods, which prevented my sugar cravings. (That is a massive win, I love sweets and sugar.)

- My spending habits changed as I had no need to spend money nor had many opportunities to do so. Because of the summer garden and my parents' very well stocked food pantry, I only bought what I needed, mostly tofu, oat milk and ice cream for the kids.

- My desires became really minimalistic as I didn’t crave anything fancy, or “loud” just clarity, simplicity and to slow down.

- I started noticing the wildlife around me, the changing sky and the “simple” but how powerful gifts from nature such as wind rustling the leaves or birds communicating in ways I’ll never understand. I also love watching the birds fly; the freedom they experience must be out of this world.

At this point in time, it feels to me that all the worldly distractions such as digital media, political and corporate noise, content, overconsumption (of food, shopping, celebrity and influencers culture etc.) Keep us away from that unique and one-of-a-kind connection to nature, our true self, life (call it however you like). That connection, which is the core of our existence craves simplicity, manageable routines, ability to just be and enjoy life in its purest and simplest form. Unfortunately, in the world turned upside down simplicity has become hard to find.

However, I do believe that we all can get off the crazy waggon and look for ways to reset our creativity, our sanity and lifestyle. Standing still and listening for a moment to ideas, solutions, dreams is one way to reconnect with what’s important to us. I’m not saying it’s going to be easy or happen overnight. What I’m saying the work, the struggle, the conscious decisions are part of the process that might take some time but the effort to slow down, find rituals that work for us specifically (everyone is different and will respond differently to the same ideas, rituals, activities etc.) is worth prioritising as life is precious and should be devoted to what gives us pleasure, happiness and allows to live a good life.

Happy Creating,

xx

Magda

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About the Author

I work across film, writing, art projects and inclusive education, exploring how we create, sustain and reconnect with creativity. I’m Made By Dyslexia, so expect the occasional typo and a deep commitment to big ideas. If you’re looking for a thoughtful conversation about your own creative practice, I also offer Slow & Sustainable Creativity Review if you would like to work with me.

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