As I write tonight, my cup of coffee sharing my moment, I realize the ability to do nothing feels fantastic. My past did not include doing ‘nothing’ on the itinerary. My motto was to push through.
My mother and I both carried the torch of never quit in our veins. Until I hit a wall in my health. Several times, over the past few years I experienced burn out.
Self-care, as read in textbooks in college, didn’t seem to phase me. Until I hit the wall of exhaustion, self-care was for everyone else. After enough down periods in my life, the overworked brain of mine accepted the need to care for myself.
. . .
One evening, shortly after the shut down of life outside our home, my task centered around the creation of a simple meal. A platter of cheese, nuts, crackers, and fruit was placed creativity around the perimeter. No one was home as of yet, and the time was all to myself.
The wonderful sensation of quietude lingered in my home.
After the location of a peaceful place on the carpeted living room floor, my weary frame sat crossed-legged beside my plate. Now, to relax while I enjoyed the solitude of quietness was beautiful.
Nothing; no sounds of traffic, or people buzzing by, simply the peacefulness of alone surrounded me.
Rest and rejuvenation give us strength when busy times overtake our lives. When we take time away from stress, worry, and the rush of life, we rebuild our stamina.
What makes rest essential?
Our minds and bodies need to repair over the course of sleep. When we awaken, we feel rested and ready to go forward. If we rush through the day and hectically enter the night, the sleep we experience is disjointed. The bed is nothing more than a storage place for our worn-out body. It includes tossing and turning rather than a night of restful sleep.
Have you ever stopped to just be, to just sit, and meditate on nothing heavy or weighted?
As I write tonight, my cup of coffee sharing my moment, I realize the ability to do nothing feels fantastic.
The steady beat of rain echoes into my dining room. My laptop open before me, my fingers poised to type, and my mind ready, the rest I gathered lingers.
No matter what comes my way, for the next few minutes, I have peace. The world outside my door, as scary and uncertain as it appears, is separated for a short time from my thoughts.
The music beside me, graces me with classical piano, while I envision a life past the quarantines and fear. Someone, somewhere wrote a piece of music, a teacher taught someone, for who knows how long, to play the piano, and now, the same person plays on my iPhone.
No matter what comes my way, for the next few minutes, I relish in a peaceful experience.
At one point in life, the music created didn’t have the dire situation we face today, or did it? We will never know except to be thankful the moment we listen is the moment we gain the blessing of times past.
Today, tonight, or tomorrow, look for the time to relax and repair your mind.
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This post was previously published on Assemblage and is republished here with permission from the author.
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Photo credit: Pixabay
