Home And Family : Permission to REST!

Rest.

What’s that?

Something I need more of.

Something I COULD have but do not give myself permission for.

Anyone who knows me… knows I’m a go go person. I’m strong and passionate, I’m a goal setter, I like achieving and winning and I know a lot of you are the same.

I have spoken to a couple of people in the last few days and this very issue has arisen in each conversation. What is it to Rest?

I’m a tired mummy. I’m a tired wife. I’m a tired friend. I am tired… but I still go and go and go and go and go….and then one day I fall in a heap.

Today was the first morning in the last nearly 6 years that I had the morning all to myself. Luke has just started full time pre primary and Ben has started a 3 year old kindy for only half a day a week – Tuesday mornings.

I had 2.5 hour ALL TO MYSELF! What was I gonna do??... so I jammed as many errands and jobs in as I possibly could before running frantically to school to pick up Ben. Phew….and then off to do a few other commitments… meanwhile had the washing machine running at home… dinner slow cooking, dishwasher cleaning… then back to school to pick up Luke, home to a play date for the boys, while sipping tea, cutting veggies and finalising dinner, hanging out that washing, bath boys, feed family…HAVE NOT STOPPED.

…and when I do stop… I feel… guilty. I feel as though I should be doing something. I could be at least doing something… even if its just returning emails, or replying to that text… I’m not sure if It’s our society, our culture, our generation, or just me…. But resting is something I find difficult. But rest is something I need. I know I will be a better mother, a better wife, a better friend if I learn to REST!

What does rest actually mean?

Rest is freedom from work, toil, strain or activity. Rest is the termination of motion or action of any kind, and applicable to any body or being, as rest from labour, rest from mental exertion or rest of body or mind. A body is at rest, when it ceases to move. The mind is at rest, when it ceases to be disturbed or agitated.

We have this pressure mounting within us, to be everything to everyone. We struggle to say no. We struggle to find balances. We are told constantly we need to find time to exercise, to eat right, to work, to be social but we are very rarely are told to rest.

Even my girlfriend this morning text me saying she had dropped both her kids off to school and she too had the first day to herself in years… and didn’t know what to do!

I wonder… just wonder… if the statistics of depression and a anxiety would decrease dramatically if we actually encouraged and educated our society and each other on the benefits of rest!

Exodus 33:14 “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

Psalm 62:5 “Yes, my soul, find rest in God: my hope comes from him.”

Mums… its time to give yourself permission to rest – I’m telling myself this too! Its time to start listening to our bodies; its time for me to LEARN how to rest EFFECTIVELY!

“Just as it’s difficult to get lazy individuals to work more diligently, it is just as difficult to get the hard drivers to back off. Of course you need to train hard, but you also need to rest hard (or at least effectively)” Bob Takano

I’ve lived in my new home for 4 months with this gorgeous big bathtub, and have not used it once! So I promise within the next 2 weeks I am going to fill up the bath tub, once the kids are in bed, light some candles, listen to some music and REST!

Effective Rest means different things to different people! The most effective rest is SLEEP! But sometimes rest is permission to give yourself a hot bath, to watch a romantic comedy AT LUNCH TIME, to sit in the fresh air and read a magazine, to do some knitting in the afternoon sun, to go the bed early, to say ‘no’ to more commitments just so you book in time to REST!