Taking a break
It’s interesting that with the CDC report in the last few days starting the shift away from mask requirements, there seems to be a cautious optimism blooming. Add to that the rapid approach of the Memorial Day weekend kicking off the summer season and all of the sudden we are all looking around at each other like people who have just emerged from a dank, dark, underground bomb shelter — slightly bewildered, tentatively hopeful, wanting desperately to believe that we’re all okay and that our world is, at least somewhat, intact.
Can you relate?
What strikes me is that while I do share in the cautious optimism, I’m also oddly tired. It’s not an excess of physical exercise (although I wish that were the case). It’s not that I have climbed a literal mountain, but yet I have the sensation of having struggled upward over many, many months. I think it’s me giving in to the energy that has pervaded the world, at least as I’ve been experiencing it.
I don’t need to list the challenges we’ve been facing — we all know what they are. And I don’t think that giving voice to them is even helpful as we move forward. It’s time for a new day. A fresh page in our journal. A new start and a new narrative.
But before we can really embrace a gathering of optimistic energy to propel us onward and upward, I’d like to share a suggestion that came to me this morning over coffee:
We need to take a break.
I’m not kidding.
We need to give ourselves a measure of grace to recoup and regroup. It’s time to put some boundaries on our time, our sleep (as in, we need more of the restful kind), our output of energy, our input on every level, from news to social media to requests from others. It’s time to draw a line around ourselves and sink deeply into that sanctuary we all have inside.
We need to put our own oxygen masks on for a bit and allow our systems to calm down.
Where do we start?
For myself, I decided not to take any classes toward my master’s degree this summer. One less commitment. I am nearly finished with my leadership program commitment and I logged my hours of CEU’s to maintain my design license. Done! I am finishing the intense juggle of client meetings that happens as many head back north for the summer. Sweeeeeeeet relief.
And now, I’m wrapping my head around hitting the pause button and I am inviting you to join me. We need it. Let’s do it together.
How will you rest? Where will you find succor for your soul?
Do share — I love to hear!
With love and gratitude,
Lisa