The last several weeks have been such a whirlwind for me. I was running around like crazy trying to prepare everything for my daughter to get home, and then there was all the emotion that surrounded her actually getting home, followed by hosting a huge open house event for everyone to welcome her back. I was going, going, going so much that when all the craziness was finished I felt like I had been run over by a semi-truck. I felt completely exhausted…both physically and emotionally…and that’s when I realized just how much I needed to sit back, relax, and remember what it feels like to just breathe…
I’ve never been good at taking time to sit back and relax. Maybe that comes from having been a single mom for so many years where taking time to relax just wasn’t an option. After so many years, I think going a million miles an hour simply became a habit. Then, by the time I got married again and had someone to help me shoulder the burdens it was too late, the habit had already been engrained into who I was. And so my life continued to consist of going from one major undertaking to another with little to no time in between.
But by the end of this last week, more than ever before, I reached a point where I realized just how badly I needed to truly take a little time to just relax…and remember what it feels like to just breathe…
That is why I decided to take the next four weeks off of my regular work to spend some quality time with my family before my kids move out to college again and to give myself some much needed relaxation time. Just as an fyi I will still continue to post my daily blogs during my time-off because after six years of never missing a day I am not about to start missing one now! But other than that I don’t intend to do any normal work at all, which for me will be a first in life…but admittedly, it is going to be a much needed first indeed.
I think all of us reach a point when we need to be willing to step away from things and relax. And I believe that doing so allows us to clear our minds and get a clearer perspective on where we want our futures to take us. As the great Leonardo Da Vinci once said: “Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer.”
Summer is coming to an end all too soon so try and find time you can also find time to relax and allow yourself to remember what it feels like to just breathe…even if its just for a weekend…we all need it!
~Amy Rees Anderson
