The Art of Pause: Finding Clarity in Sunday Stillness

It's Sunday morning in LA, just after 9 AM, and I'm doing something radical – absolutely nothing.

Well, not nothing nothing. I'm sitting by my window with my second cup of coffee, watching the October sunlight cast long shadows across my apartment floor. No sketchbook. No fabric swatches. No urgent emails or project deadlines demanding my attention.

Yesterday's reflection on my growth patterns got me thinking about something I've been avoiding: the power of pause. Like, when was the last time I actually stopped long enough to just be present without immediately filling the space with productivity?

As a chronic doer (hello, fashion design major with side hustles and an overpacked social calendar), stillness has always felt like failure. Like I'm wasting precious time I could be using to create, connect, or climb whatever imaginary ladder I've constructed in my mind.

But this morning, I deliberately set my alarm an hour earlier than needed. Not to get ahead on work – but to experience what happens in the absence of doing.

And you know what? In this quiet space, I'm noticing things. The way my breathing changes when I'm truly relaxed. How my creative mind works differently when it's not being forced. The subtle shift in my perspective when I'm not viewing everything through the lens of "how can I use this?"

It reminds me of what my pattern-making professor always says about negative space – that the empty areas in a design are just as important as the filled ones. They create balance, contrast, and allow the eye somewhere to rest.

Maybe our lives need that negative space too. Maybe the pauses between our actions are where meaning gets created.

I've spent so much energy lately connecting dots, building relationships, transforming obstacles, and analyzing patterns – all valuable parts of growth. But this morning's stillness feels like an equally important piece of my evolution.

So today, I'm practicing the art of pause. Not as procrastination or avoidance, but as an intentional part of my creative process and personal growth.

Because maybe mastery isn't just about doing more or better – maybe it's also about knowing when to do nothing at all.

Anyone else struggling with the art of pause? Or am I the only one who finds stillness strangely terrifying?