If at some point you’ve ever found yourself following a bunch of astrology-related Instagram accounts that provide you with a daily horoscope, then you know that they always make big promises of change.

Blessings are coming! It’s time to level up! Get ready for the shift! A breakthrough is on the way!

I don’t follow these accounts for accurate forecasting, so it’s easy for me to have a laugh when the outsized, ultra-positive predictions roll in. But there have been moments when I want to shake my phone and yell, “when?!”

When I look back on my experience up till now, it’s so clear to me that I tend to work in phases of major stasis, followed by dramatic change.

I’ve changed careers and rerouted my professional course a couple of times, and I’ve been known to jump quickly into relationships.

On the other hand, I can get really stuck. I’ve stayed in valleys of unhappiness and dissatisfaction much longer than I needed to, failing to take action or to see solutions that were right in front of me.

Typical, right? I’ve mellowed out so much with age, but the all-or-nothing tendency is still with me.

I moved just over two summers ago, which was a great, refreshing, positive step forward. It brought me closer to activities that I enjoy and helped me to close a chapter of my life that really needed closing.

In the last year, though, I’ve felt myself falling back into a sticky pattern of feeling deflated and frustrated and at a loss for solutions.

This really peaked for me in August, and I rightly took some time to sit with it and examine it.

In the past week or two, I can feel something—I’m not sure what—shifting.

It doesn’t necessarily feel like the major breakthrough that my horoscopes like to predict, but maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe I need to learn how to welcome change in a way that’s quiet, but persistent; subtle, yet lasting.

With a history of either catapulting myself into 180 turns or coming to standstills, maybe I’m being challenged to shift my direction few degrees and keep going at a steady pace.

Of course, if a breakthrough were to happen, I’d take it. As big and bold and magical as can be.

But whether such a thing is possible or not, I reckon it would have to begin in small ways: the shifting of the seasons, a renewed dedication to my goals, feeling my mind relax into openness and imagination.

What I know is that a month ago very little felt possible, and this morning, a lot feels possible.

Happy Sunday, friends. Here are some recipes and reads.

Recipes

1. Craving one of these vegan chili cheese dogs.

2. I’m holding onto every last summer tomato, and this simple tomato zucchini herb salad is a nice thing to make with them.

3. These vegan meatball subs look moreish indeed; I’m thinking about making them with the focaccia from The Vegan Week and my baked vegan meatballs with tempeh.

4. Acorn squash isn’t my favorite type of squash, but Erin’s delightful recipe for stuffed acorn squash is calling my name.

5. A warm batch of apple oatmeal cookies sounds just right for the start of baking season.

Reads

1. GI issues affect both sexes, but if you’ve ever wondered why more women than men seem to suffer, this article explains.

2. A beautiful look at how the experience of art can renew and restore people who are in caregiving situations.

3. The rising toll of drug-resistant infections is very unsettling to read about, yet I think awareness is important.

4. I love The Bear and writings about the bear. In this essay, a former restaurant employee reflects on “restaurant family,” which the show portrays.

5. A great profile of the “science sleuths” who are dedicated to raising awareness about inaccuracies published in peer-reviewed journals.

Speaking of things that I’m trying to shift, my own “I can’t, I can’t, I can’t” mentality is one of them.

Case in point: I spent most of yesterday running around on errands and trying to get work done. When dinnertime came I had the intention of cooking, but I was tired, and I thought, “no way.”

I pondered running out to get food, but instead I put one foot in front of the other and made my mushroom stroganoff, which I’d planned on and had ingredients for. It was easier than I remembered and so cozy and comforting.

This morning, knowing that I’m on a work deadline, the prospect of drafting this post made me think, “I can’t.” Too busy, too much to do, etc.

But then I sat down and just wrote about what was on my mind. And here we are.

Hope you have a great rest of your Sunday, and I’ll be checking in soon.

xo