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Summer Recess
by Joy Jones
It’s summertime
and school’s out. What are you going to do
with your
summer recess? A lot of people will tell you this
is the ideal time to go to
school yourself, take a professional development course,
plan for the upcoming school year, or clean out all the
closets in your house.
Don’t do any of that stuff. Well, let me clarify.
What I want to say is -
don’t make “doing” the priority, make your priority
“being.” At the risk of
sounding like a new-age airhead, I’d like to recommend
resting. Repose,
relaxation, and doing nothing are all honorable states.
Our western culture values anything that’s
action-packed. If something can be made to go
faster then it must be better. People pay good
money to take time management courses because they have
so many things to do. Multi-tasking has become a
way of life.
However, I say resting is just as important as any of
these other skills.
Sufficient rest is the foundation for any activity.
Life has an alternating
cycle of daylight and moonlight, rest and activity,
business and stillness. We need to respect
both sides of life’s symmetry. The very word
‘recess’ gives us a clue about how important resting is.
Recess has two meanings. It means to take a break
but it also means a secret, inner or hidden place.
Each of us has a hidden inner place that needs renewing
on a regular basis. Being quiet, sitting still,
honoring a time and place for peace and leisure help to
keep that core centered and grounded. Many of us
run with only one side of the equation and thus become
emotionally lopsided, burned out, even dangerous.
This summer, give yourself a valuable gift - nothing.
Make space to relax. It’s time for recess.
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