Maybe It’s Time For A Break.

So you can explore the in-between

I took a break from gardening in February.

Whenever I told people, they asked me “Why?”

It’s a valid question — and the answer is honestly really simple. I heard a friend say she was taking a break from gardening this year and I thought, “Hmm maybe I should take one too.” I was running low on flowers and decided once I ran out, I was going to take a break.

After only a couple weeks, my biggest and most obvious realization was how much I was using gardening to cope with inconveniences, frustrations, and everyday bullsh*t.

You know the things — your kid spilling juice everywhere right after you just cleaned up or right before you were about to leave the house. Your co-worker sending an “urgent” request on a day you were already pressed for time. Somebody cutting you off in traffic or someone trying you out in public.

During my gardening break, I had several things happen to me almost daily where I thought “see, this is why I garden.” And while I will never judge anyone else (or myself) for gardening, I did have to evaluate whether or not I want to be a person who gardens every time something bothers me. It helps for sure, but I started to wonder how else I can work to deal with these frustrations. If I decide not to make this break permanent, how can I be more intentional in the future? Because the reality is, I shouldn’t grab a flower every time I experience an inconvenience.

In this break, I realized there is nothing wrong with taking a break from something simply to give yourself a break from it. To live life without it for a little while and take notice of what’s different.

Sometimes you’ll realize you need to change — and other times, you’ll realize you just needed a break. Maybe you don’t need to cut the thing out completely. Maybe you don’t even want to. Maybe you just need it in moderation — or to meet it differently.

And that is the in-between. The space where reflection meets commitment and patience meets expectation.

While the in-between can be confusing sometimes, it’s actually the most beautiful place to be. It gives us perspective. It softens our certainty. It stretches our understanding. It becomes the journey.

The in-between is the story.

It was from that in-between that Smoke Brk was born.

Smoke Brk is my Substack that features moments of reflection, lessons, and little things to take note of when you just need a moment to inhale the good shit and exhale the bullshit.

Not from a place of resolution, but from a place of reflection. A breath between who I was and who I’m still becoming. It’s a space I created for all of us trying to find language for the ache. For the evolution. For the moments that don’t fit neatly into “before” or “after.”

I don’t have all the answers but I do have experiences and lessons shared through writing in hopes that it provides space for others to feel less alone.

Here’s what you’ll find:

✍🏾 Free Weekly Reflections: Personal essays + reflections, cultural commentary, and glimpses into my lessons

💌 Dear Unfulfilled (launching in June): A series of open letters for paid subscribers. I write in response to reader submissions — stories, thoughts, or quiet wonderings about where you may be feeling unfulfilled. Your name stays anonymous, but your story guides the words.

💖 Intuitive Love Letters (launching in July): For both paid tiers, I offer intuitive, hand-written letters crafted just for you. These are tangible touchpoints of affirmation, insight, or reminders mailed straight to you.

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If you’ve ever:

• Felt caught between identities
• Lost yourself in the roles you carry
• Yearned for a softer, slower way to reclaim your truth

🖤 Subscribe for free to receive weekly reflections
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Wherever you are — fold, flourish, or floating somewhere in between — this space was made with you in mind.

Til next time,

Ifie