Two Roses & a Thorn: A Reflection Ritual for Burnout Recovery

When your Monday through Friday aligns with an academic calendar, it’s easy for you to get caught up in it all.

The deadlines. The meetings. Constantly being “on” and attentive.

Work, very quickly, becomes the way you measure your days.

I didn’t notice it happening at first.

It wasn’t until more recently when someone asked what I enjoyed outside of work.

My response: I didn’t have one.

That told me something.

I needed a way to notice my life beyond productivity for others.

.01 The Dinner Ritual

Travel days can be full.

Travel days can also be zen.

Regardless, each evening, once we’ve ordered and settled, we share our Two Roses and a Thorn.

Two moments we enjoyed:
A tour. A meal. A song. A routine. A break in the routine.

And one that you would say to be less favorable.

It is a simple dinner time routine. One to keep the trip in the present. And for other ways to feel connected to your travel partners.

Over time, those small pauses do something bigger.

They remind you about the simple pleasures of life. What fuels you. What feels like you- outside of work. Outside of daily responsibilities.

.02 Why It Prevents Burnout

Burnout isn’t always about doing too much.

Sometimes it’s about losing sight of what fills you.

Say that again:

Burnout isn’t always about doing too much.
Sometimes it’s about losing sight of what fills you.

Without reflection, time blurs and passes.

As time passes, you lose sight of those little moments. Those little moments in which you can respond to a person when they ask you what you enjoy outside of work.

You begin to see:

• What environments restore you
• What pace works for you
• Where you tend to overextend

That awareness rebuilds identity quietly-without the need to restructure your life.

Closing

In a profession that runs on structure and emotional output, small pauses matter.

Two Roses and a Thorn isn’t about fixing your life.

It’s about noticing it.

And sometimes, noticing is enough to begin feeling like yourself again.

Two Roses and a Thorn helps you notice the trip as it’s happening.

But noticing is only part of it.

If you’ve ever returned home and felt the experience slip away too quickly, the next step is learning how to preserve it.

I share my simple memory system here → Keeping What Matters: A Memory Practice for Life Beyond Work