My story isn't so different than any other working mom and wife. There is always more than one project going on at a time. Work – kids – home – husband – my own health … (not necessarily in that order) and that's if nothing else pops up during any given day. ¡Dios mío! We are all busy and have good intentions with all the commitments that we make. And hopefully, we are making a commitment to ourselves to – relax and rest.
Photo credit: sxc.hu
Even with all my deadlines, I took the day off. Yep, Saturday I slept in, did NO housework and ordered in for all our meals. My husband and I both agreed we needed time to relax and rest. I even almost forgot to post (since I didn't want to break my 35 day posting streak I did complete that)! Sunday morning, we felt great! Doing laundry and cleaning up somehow seems easier after a full day's rest.
And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.”
For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. -Mark 6:31
Now, that is great on weekends when it so happens that we don't have anything else planned and we can stay in all day but what about the week days? We can't just sleep in Monday – Friday if we decide we want to relax and rest! Well, we could but there would be serious consequences 😛 What can we do to relax and nourish our body, soul and mind? One tip I'll share on how to find time to relax is to set a reminder or alarm on your phone to meditate or pray in the middle of the day. It only has to be for five minutes it you want. Setting it for different times each day is even better. That way you won't be expecting the alarm. It's the surprise that urges you to do it right away.
When that reminder goes off, stop what you are doing and take a moment for yourself.
- Close your eyes, take long deep breaths and either pray or just be and allow your mind and body to relax.
- If you are at a place where you can get up and walk around, do that. (only if it is away from others, don't let them be a distraction to your r & r)
- If you can move to a comfy couch or chair, move but don't get too comfy! Set a time limit.
- Or sit and look at the photo above and imagine yourself there … relax and rest …
This has worked for me. What do you do to give yourself a little 'r & r'?
