Maritess De Ocampo

Mom and Kids from Pexels by Ketut Subiyanto

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<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787420823038pexels-ketut-subiyanto-4473871.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:957.995px;height:auto" width="957.995"/>A wonderful slow Sunday can begin when we stop rushing toward Monday | Photo from Pexels by Ketut Subiyanto</div>Last week, I wrote about why slowing down on a Sunday can feel nearly impossible, particularly for working mothers.Sunday may be called a day of rest, but it often carries its own invisible list of responsibilities. There are meals to plan, errands to finish, household tasks waiting to be done, and family members who need our time and attention. Before the day is even over, our thoughts are already moving toward Monday: the schedules, deadlines, school requirements, work commitments, and unfinished tasks waiting for us.Even when our bodies stop, our minds often keep going.But after writing that story, one question stayed with me: If our Sundays cannot always be quiet, empty, or perfectly peaceful, what does slowing down actually look like in real family life?Coming from last week&#x27;s introspection, I decided to explore externally and this time turned to other moms for some insights. So, for this week’s Sunday Slowdown, I asked three mothers to complete one sentence:“For me, a wonderful slow Sunday with the family is…”<div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/health-beauty-fashion/2026/8/16/why-is-it-so-hard-to-have-a-slow-sunday-0422" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">RELATED STORY: Why is it so hard to have a slow Sunday?</a></div><div>Slowing Down Can Look Different for Every Family</div>Dermtropics&#x27; co-founder and CEO <a href="https://www.instagram.com/margaux_lucena/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Margaux Arambulo-Lucena</a> spoke about setting aside the habit of looking at their phones and allowing the family to take it slow. Margaux shares: &quot;For me, a wonderful Slow Sunday with the family is enjoying a good meal, having nowhere to rush to, and simply being present with each other. No pressure to check our phones, just slowing down and being grateful for the time together.&quot;Entrepreneur, host, actress, and 1Lit Corp&#x27;s<a href="https://www.instagram.com/issalitton/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Issa Litton</a> describes her slow Sunday, &quot;A wonderful slow Sunday with the family is a late lunch, lingering over dessert, filled with stories/kwento and surrounded by our pets. Then I retire to my corner with a good book and a cookie or slice of cake.&quot;Lifestyle and wellness content creator <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mustlovemom/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Aliza Apostol-Goco</a> reveals, &quot;For me, a wonderful Slow Sunday with the family is our usual Sunday Mass, Robby cooking lunch, having all three kids home, and spending the rest of the day just hanging out maybe watching a movie together, eating, and not having anywhere we need to be.&quot;<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787421256562Margaux, Miko, Mateo_In Article.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>Margaux Arambulo-Lucena with husband Miko and son Mateo</div>All of their Sundays are beautifully different: one centers on a meal without phones, another leaves room for family stories, pets, reading, and something sweet, while the third is grounded in faith, familiar rituals, home-cooked food, and the pleasure of having the entire family together.While each expressed their own unique way of enjoying a slow Sunday with family, something still connects all three.None of the mothers described an elaborate escape from everyday life, nor were there complicated itineraries or extraordinary plans. Their wonderfully slow Sundays were all about ordinary things: sharing a meal, going to Mass, telling stories, reading a book, watching a movie, spending time with pets, and being at home with the people they love.What made these moments special was not what they were escaping from, but how fully they were able to be present for them.<div>Slowness Is Not the Absence of Activity</div>Perhaps we sometimes misunderstand what it means to slow down.We imagine that a restful Sunday must be completely free of responsibilities. We think we need to leave the city, book a weekend away, clear the entire calendar, or create the perfect setting before we can finally relax.There is certainly nothing wrong with getting away. Sometimes, a change of environment gives us the space we need to breathe. But if rest depends entirely on escaping our ordinary lives, it may always feel just beyond our reach.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787421467103Issa Litton with daughters Bella and Chasey.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>Issa Litton with daughters Bella and Chasey</div>The three mothers’ answers offer another way of looking at it.A slow Sunday does not necessarily mean that nothing happens. Lunch is still prepared, the family still gets dressed and goes to Mass, conversations unfold, pets need attention, and food is passed around the table. While the day may still have activities, it isn&#x27;t ruled by urgency and rush.Maybe that is the difference.Slowing down is not always about doing less. Sometimes, it is about letting ourselves be fully mindful of what we are already doing—and just embracing the magic of the present moment.It is eating without checking the time every few minutes and listening to a story without thinking about the next task. It is watching a movie without mentally rewriting Monday’s to-do list and allowing dessert to be more than the final course before everyone rushes away from the table.It is choosing to remain where we are and soaking in the joy of the here and now, instead of constantly rushing and wishing ourselves into the next hour.<div>Being Present in the Life We Already Have</div>As a perpetually busy working mother, I know how tempting it is to treat Sunday as a day for catching up.There is always something that could be organized, cleaned, answered, prepared, or completed. Productivity can make us feel responsible and in control. But it can also take over the very hours meant to restore us.The truth is, family life will rarely pause long enough to create the perfect conditions for rest. Homes can be noisy, plans change, and someone may be tired or irritable. There may still be chores, traffic, disagreements, and last-minute requests.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787421556900Aliza Apostol Goco with Robby and kids.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>Aliza Apostol-Goco with husband Robby and kids Zach, Luccia, and Rocio</div>But presence does not require perfection.It asks only that, for a moment, we stop trying to be somewhere else. Can you imagine the relief from simply pausing from our default multi-tasking mode for just a day?This becomes even more meaningful as our children grow older. When they are young, having everyone at home may feel completely ordinary—and sometimes exhausting. But as they begin to have their own schedules and lives, an afternoon when everyone happens to be under one roof will feel less ordinary and more precious.One day, the meal we almost rushed through, the story we only half-listened to, or the movie playing while everyone sat together may become the kind of moment we wish we could replay.Perhaps this is what these three mothers reminded me: the life we want to slow down for is not waiting somewhere else. It is already happening around us right now.<div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/health-beauty-fashion/2026/8/10/mindfulness-and-my-child-raising-present-kids-in-the-digital-age-0745" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">RELATED STORY: Mindfulness and my child: Raising present kids in the digital age</a></div><div>Carrying Sunday Into the Week Ahead</div>Last week, I asked why it is so difficult for mothers to slow down. The demands have not disappeared, and there is no simple formula that will make every Sunday restful.But what if we do not need an entire uninterrupted day before we can experience a sense of slowness?It may begin with one meal without phones or one conversation that&#x27;s given our full attention. It could be one familiar family ritual, one chapter of a book, or one movie watched together. It could be a long deep breath and a slow intentional exhale or simply one hour when we decide that being where we are is enough.Sunday cannot erase the demands of the coming week. But it can remind us that our lives are not made meaningful only by what we accomplish.They are also shaped by the meals we share, the stories we finish telling, the rituals we return to, and the people beside us whom we feel no need to rush.A wonderful slow Sunday is not necessarily an escape from real life. It is an opportunity to return to it just as it is in the present moment—and really notice it, inhabit it, while being grateful for the ordinary moments we might otherwise just hurry past.What does your own unhurried Sunday with the family look like? May these slower moments leave us rested, reconnected, and ready to meet the week ahead.<div>Main Photo Credits: Photo from<a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-woman-and-her-children-lying-on-bed-4473871/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Pexels</a> by Ketut Subiyanto</div><div>Family photos courtesy of Margaux, Issa, and Aliza.</div>

After exploring why mothers find it difficult to rest and slow down, we ask Margaux Arambulo-Lucena, Issa Litton, and Aliza Apostol-Goco what a wonderful slow Sunday with the family means to them—and discover that presence, not perfection, makes the day restorative.

After exploring why mothers find it difficult to rest and slow down, we ask Margaux Arambulo-Lucena, Issa Litton, and Aliza Apostol-Goco what a wonderful slow Sunday with the family means to them—and discover that presence, not perfection, makes the day restorative.

Three moms remind us: A slow Sunday isn't an escape—it's a return to the present moment

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Three moms remind us: A slow Sunday isn't an escape—it's a return to the present moment

Mawi Fojas De Ocampo

Published August 23, 2026 02:31 AM PHT

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Sunday Slowdown

Slow Living

Present Moment

Motherhood

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