“La Dolce Far Niente–the sweetness of doing nothing.” ~Elizabeth Gilbert
Dear Universe,
Sometimes you need a day.
A day where you allow yourself to not think about anything. A day to simply sit back, relax and revel in the sweetness of doing nothing.
These days are pretty much impossible to come by. There’s always something to get to: laundry, cleaning, email, work, personal obligations, something. A million somethings. And stopping to rest seems foolish, selfish even. How can I stop when there’s so much to do?
But this past weekend, I was gifted with one of those days. My friend (the one I visited in L.A.) was in town and we both just needed a day. The first night we stayed in sweats, watched movies, ordered Mexican in and drank sangria. In the morning we woke up, stayed in the same sweats, drank coffee and tea, watched more movies, ate chocolate, chatted and chilled out… all day.
It wasn’t until then that I realized that for over a month now I’ve just been moving non-stop and that I was exhausted. Three different time zones and over 17,000 miles of traveling might to do that to a person. The whole time I was away I kept moving, kept walking, kept driving, kept visiting, kept swimming, kept subway-ing. I didn’t want to stop because I wanted to make the most of the time away. And I’m glad I did.
Coming home I felt like I couldn’t pause, even for a second, because there was so much to be done. Lots of things were waiting for me and I had lists of lists of things to tick off before the semester starts up.
With my friend visiting though, I didn’t check email. I didn’t do work. I didn’t do any of the things I would have normally been buzzing about doing. It wasn’t until we were both lying on couches, covered in blankets that I realized how much I needed that break.
I remember once years ago I was working full-time and taking night classes. For months I maintained this frantic schedule and pace, but I was reaching my wit’s end. That’s when my brother pulled me aside and told me to take a day-off. He said I needed a “mental health day.” The next day he took me to the movies. He didn’t let me do any work—for a whole 24 hours.
The result? I felt refreshed and re-energized.
I realize I don’t let myself have those mental health days as often as I sometimes need them. I feel guilty taking time off when there are things to do, people to get back to. Even when I’m traveling, I’m still keeping up with work and obligations—I never really let myself take a whole day off. I’ve gotten better about keeping a healthy balance in my life, but it is something I still need to work on.
I’m so grateful my friend and I had the time together this weekend. We both needed the break. Oh, and lobster dinner! Nothing says New England summer better than lobster and corn on the cob. Thanks for that too.
Sometimes you need a day…or two. Thanks for the much needed rest and for letting me share it with a good friend and family.
With Gratitude,
A
