What do you do to relax?
Maybe watch tv, read, put your feet up and look at magazines, eat a snack, go outside? Do you even have time to relax?
In my judgement, most of us are simply overstimulated. It doesn’t make any of our activities or stimuli bad, per se. I know what it means to feel like you have too much going on. I think most of us try to do too much.
We need rest. Our bodies and spirits need healing from daily activity and old hurts. Being more mindful of what we’re doing, how much we expect from ourselves and demand from others is a start. For example, when we allow ourselves and our students to notice that emotions or tensions are rising up, we can allow them to work well in us. We can respond more patiently noticing that frustration or anger is arising, we can focus on what we’re actually doing, and we can be kinder to ourselves and one another.
So I encourage you to be a little more aware, a bit more mindful this season. Notice what you’re thinking and doing. And be loving enough to rest. Even if the rest is a matter of going about one of your projects in a more relaxed manner, that’s a worthwhile start.
If not now, when? When you’re done? Done with that list? There’s always something to be done. That’s good. Re-creating in between and creating space for some rest nourishes us.
