Have you ever woken up feeling like you just came from a holiday yet you did not? You know that feeling that makes you feel like you are ready to conquer the world…yeah exactly that. This happened to me early this week. For a moment I was mesmerized. How could I feel so fresh and alive all of a sudden. This does not mean that this should not happen. It’s just that I could not pick anything special that had happened prior to this feeling. Could I have discovered a better sleeping position? I wondered. It took me a moment to reflect.

As always I am a diligent planner and scheduler. I hence decided to go back and analyze my moves the previous days. What had I done differently? If you can discover something that can save you from paying for a holiday, then why not take a moment and figure it out. One thing that I could easily pick was that I had spent some time with nature the previous day. Nature has great healing and relaxing power. I however interact with nature pretty often and I don’t remember waking up on such a high in the recent past.

I however realized I had also unconsciously done something that I seem to have dropped a while back; having a day for doing nothing. Sounds like a paradox, right? Yeah, I call it exactly that; A day for doing nothing. I had crafted this day a while back to help me break away from the laptop. It’s the day I did not check E mails or work on any document; it’s a day for doing nothing. Working from home seems to have taken this away from me. I know it has done the same to most people. The laptop is always at an arms length and there’s always something to be done.

End of last week seems to have favored me though. I managed to stream online to a board meeting last Friday. This was not because I had scheduled to rest, it’s just that I was not in a position to drive; thanks to running injuries and covid vaccine jab site pain. This however turned to be a blessing in disguise. The virtual attendance saved me 6 hours on the road and maybe a day full of other activities. This was the beginning of my time to do nothing, a morning with nature and great relaxing music. This was my holiday moment, the moment that set a great pace for this week.

We all know and can relate with the importance of rest. We however may not realize the real definition of rest. We confuse rest with recreation, doing things like travelling, hiking, drinking with buddies, gardening, reading. These are breaks from work not necessarily rest. Actually you might feel tired after this despite the change of routine or the change of environment. Have you ever taken a holiday then got back feeling not as relaxed? Chances are you took a break from work but you did not rest.

That’s why I had scheduled a “day for doing nothing” and not just for recreation. It’s the day I can’t account for anything apart from my morning exercise and eating. If I am to add any activity, then it’s an hour or so of reading or watching a movie. The fact that I am writing from an angle of sharing my own thoughts is testament that I rested. I haven’t done this kind of writing in a while.

Rest and relaxation;

• Allows us to reconnect with the world in and around us; it gives us a chance to introspect and listen to our inner voices.
• Allows you to slow down and gain a sense of perspective on what really matters; it saves you from doing, doing, doing and checking things off the list without questioning the value of your actions.
• Reactivates our creativity; it’s in resting that great ideas are borne
• Needless to say that it keeps you glowing, happy and pleasant to relate with. This is a plus in relationships.

Everything in this world needs space and this includes you. Try to bring silence into your life, it’s a great way to deeply rest the body, mind and soul. I wish I could start my day with an hour under a tree in the forest, sitting on a rock near a river or listening to the waves near the ocean. I however know that I can still create my moments of silence wherever I am. For now, my day of doing nothing still reigns.

“Rest is not idle, it’s not wasteful. Sometimes rest is the most productive thing you can do for your body and soul. “

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