To rest is to waste, and other lies

blog

Sophomore year of high school, my algebra class was the last period of the day.  Every Friday, in the last two minutes before the bell would ring, the teacher would stand up in front of his squirrelly students and give the same speech: “I know you’re anxious for the weekend.  You’re thinking about all of the fun you’re going to have, all of the time with your friends, how you don’t have to come to school for two whole days.  But listen: the minute you walk out that door, the clock starts.  The instant that the bell rings, time starts ticking away, getting smaller and smaller and smaller.  Right now – this moment – is the very best part of your weekend, because it’s all still ahead of you.  But,” he would famously finish, “IT’S ALL DOWNHILL FROM HERE.”

Cue the bell ringing, and me sprinting out into the weekend, hell-bent on not losing a single second.

Who knows how formative my high school math teacher’s speech was in my current life.  All I know is that I put a lot of pressure on myself to achieve, to succeed, to do more and do it well.  I find it next to impossible to sit still, and it’s hard for me to separate “time rested” from “time wasted.”  Add it to the list of reasons why “Annie needs therapy”: in my mind, nothing-doing is synonymous with failure.

This belief system keeps me moving at a frantic pace.  My busy, busy job takes up the vast majority of my brain space, and whatever is left is instantly snatched up by family, friends, exercise, and commitments.  If I have a free day, I fill it up – if I have a free HOUR, I fill it up.  If “vacation” is defined as “a scheduled period in which activity is suspended,” then I have never taken a vacation.  Ever.

Years of a rapid, anxiety-driven lifestyle are catching up with me.  These days, I am so tired.  I find it hard to breathe, and even harder to think.  Stress has reached an astronomical level.  My shoulders are tight and knotted.  I’m starting to believe that the biblical concept of a Sabbath isn’t such a dumb idea after all.

So it’s after 9 on Sunday morning, and I’m still in bed.  I skipped my original plan of getting up at 3:30am to climb two more mountains in favor of a day of nothing-doing.  I can’t remember a day in which I had zero plans – and even though I’m tempted, I’m choosing to not feel guilty about allowing my heart and my brain and my body to rest today.

It’s all downhill from here.  But maybe that means I can sit back, close my eyes, and just coast – if only for a day.

share:

7 Comments

  1. Beth on August 19, 2012 at 10:19 AM

    Ahh, yes, dear Annie, for us “do-ers” it can be hard to rest, huh? I instituted a sabbath a few years ago one day a week- where I made myself do nothing that felt like work (cleaning, running errands, side work apart from my day job, etc.) I made it a day for napping, visiting with loved ones, doing what I love (running, reading, etc.). It’s still hard for me to give myself that day and not feel un-productive or anxious about what I’m not doing, but it has made all the difference. In the last two months I’ve slacked on taking that sabbath day (busy season!), and oh how I can tell. it’s like I can’t rest well and I’m extra irritable and groggy. So I am a sabbath fan- I think it’s essential to maintaining balance and rest. Enjoy your sabbath day today- soak it up and enjoy what God can sometimes only do when we get still and lay ourselves down for a while. Thanks for being honest and real!

  2. HopefulLeigh on August 19, 2012 at 3:11 PM

    Self-care is so important! I hope you enjoy your day of rest.

  3. Emily from Seattle on August 19, 2012 at 3:24 PM

    I spent three months in London last year, and the first 3.5 weeks that I was over there was the first time in years that there was nothing I HAD to do. I looked forward to it at first, but once it was actually happening, I found it REALLY hard not to have any responsibilities. I had plenty to do to keep me busy, but it was all fun stuff. I wasn’t used to that, and it stressed me out a little! :)

  4. sarah on August 19, 2012 at 4:26 PM

    Very nice, good for you! Any spas open on Sundays in Denver?

  5. Mandy on August 19, 2012 at 10:34 PM

    Perfection.

  6. Kendall on August 20, 2012 at 2:43 PM

    glad to hear you are taking time breathe.
    I do not miss the irony in this post, though. In creating space to do nothing, you wrote a blog post and posted it on that same day:)
    baby steps

  7. Tad on August 20, 2012 at 6:02 PM

    Shabbat Shalom, my friend.

Leave a Comment