2. Unwind with Kerri

Transcript

You know it's Saturday morning because of how relaxed you feel. No alarm clock, curtains drawn, and your comforter and blankets piled high on top of you and your partner. They're sleeping next to you, doing that funny thing with their hand where it's resting up near their eyes and then drops a few inches and jerks back up and does it again.

It makes you giggle and their eyes flutter open. They're rustling and about to wake up too. You say your sweet good mornings and they don't mind that you've woken them with your laugh.

It's tradition to spend a little cozy time together on Saturdays in the morning. They scoot closer to you in the bed and wrap their arms around you warmly. You turn to become the little spoon and doze off again for another 20 minutes.

Your dreams pick up just where they left off. Back to a summer in your childhood where you climbed in trees and ran around in the sunshine. Light glistening through the branches, the leaves dappling shadows on your arms and bare feet.

You don't mind the dirt, or the sweat, or the grass between your toes. You are alive and everything has a sort of shimmer to it, a hidden meaning, a mystery for you to unravel. Your eyes blink awake as you see your partner use their bum to push open the bedroom door, hands full with a breakfast tray carrying coffee and croissants.

They must have snuck out when you fell back asleep. They bring the tray over to your bedside table and you can see the butter and jam they've put together in a little dish by the croissants. Your coffee is just the way you like it.

It's laundry day, so without worrying about crumbs, your partner grabs a croissant on the plate and climbs back into bed with you. You delicately hand them their coffee cup and take yours between your hands for that first warming sip. Not quite ready to eat yet yourself, you place the coffee back on the tray and snuggle in to your partner again.

Lazy, lovely Saturday. Your legs stretch out toward the far side of the bed, toes pointing and flexing, circling your ankles around, enjoying your body and the soft, cool fabric. You rub your hands down opposite arms, feeling the folds of your soft pajamas.

Relaxed. Your partner asks if you want to make it a no-phone Saturday. Something you've talked about for weeks, but never seem to entirely make happen.

You check your phone, and it's already out of battery. Perfect. You agree to let the email and the Instagram and news alerts go for the day.

They'll be there tomorrow. And so it is. You decide together that it also means no working.

Only inspired scribbles in your notebook. And only if you feel like it. Your hunger starting to grow, you choose a croissant from the plate and spread a bit of butter and jam on it.

Feeling French, imagining yourself at the counter of a tiny bakery in Paris, picking out what you want and heading to the big marché to browse antique mirrors, vintage posters and little trinkets to bring home with you. Or take pictures of, and leave for the next person to find. Without the constraints of having to actually walk from place to place, you transport yourself to the River Seine, walking past the stretch of museums, away from the Eiffel Tower, and towards the little city on an island that holds so much history.

The stained glass and gothic architecture is beautiful, but you want to hang your feet off the edge by the water in the sunlight, like you've seen all those couples do before. You imagine a picnic of baguettes and grapes and cantal cheese. You and your partner laughing and swinging your legs and kissing in the sunlight.

Lost in Saturday morning imagination, you find your partner similarly lost in a new book they've been reading. When they get into something, they read straight through to the finish and tell everyone they know about it. It's cute.

You take another sip of your coffee and hum with pleasure. You may even be ready to get out of bed soon, but not quite yet. Your partner holds their book in one hand and rubs the back of your neck and shoulders with the other.

You love these moments together, when no one else in the world is barging in, taking your attention. You get to be with your imagination, and your partner, and yourself for a few hours as the sun streams in from the far window. You feel like reading too.

The book you want is in your little office nook, so you throw on a cozy robe to go get it. As you walk into your office, you see the yoga mat stretched out on the floor. In the quiet morning, you get inspired to do a few cat-cows.

Down on all fours, you breathe in and let your belly drop to the floor. As you widen your shoulders and stretch your neck long, you breathe out and arch your back up, taking the time to explore and stretch into your tight spots. You do a few more rounds until you are ready to stretch into your feet.

Still on all fours, you lift your heels so you can stretch the bottom of your toes out against the mat, gently rocking back towards the ball of the foot and forward until you stretch back into a downward dog, letting your neck elongate as you lengthen the back of your legs and feel the strength in your shoulders. You softly walk your feet forward to your hands and let yourself hang over your toes, swaying back and forth. You engage your legs and start rolling up slowly, slowly, letting your neck hang down until you reach your arms to the side, rising them to the sky as you lift your head and stretch your arms up, lifting to the right and to the left, feeling your ribs and side body wake up with your movements.

You look out the window and see a bird flying in the distance. A jolt of love zips through your body and you zoom back toward the bedroom and shower your partner with kisses. Down their neck and shirt sleeves and their legs, they grab you in a bear hug and kiss your head, your neck, your shoulders, down your arms to the back of your hand.

You curl in together with your books and your bodies for a few more minutes as the sun rises higher in the sky, the birds sing outside of your window, and the possibilities of the day stretch out in front of you.