Get away and unplug. You’ll come back stronger than ever. – MICHAEL HYATT
Maintaining a dynamic balance is vital to a healthy outlook. Once the holidays are past, the winter season in Kansas can be a peaceful time.
Cold temps and blustery weather provide an opportunity for snuggling up with a book or cozy evenings watching Masterpiece Classic. We let go of the frantic demands and structures of the other seasons, and breathe, right?
As a person who retired from a 38-year civil servant career, most of which was spent in front of a radar screen as an air traffic controller, shucking off structure and stress was my idea of heaven on earth. It still is, yet at the same time, I was not naive enough to believe the illusion that this kind of place exists at least not for any length of time. The evidence is everywhere.
Intentional Dynamic Balance
For instance, after years of telling airplanes where to be and where not to be, I found dynamic balance in an unseen structure. Both parties, pilots, and controllers, learned this structure and then took intentional action within it to create a non-stressful air traffic flow. Well, most of the time…
I find the same to be true in our financial life: Intentionally creating a budget in anticipation of projected income and adhering to that budget takes the stress out of cash flow. I am also finding this to be true with time. Yes, even in my “retirement” years.
In all of these examples, one must be flexible, making adjustments for the unanticipated. Having flexibility includes building in appropriate margins so those surprise events are a bother rather than a crisis.
Why build in time for the unanticipated? Because there are forces at work applying pressure on the best intentions. For example in:
- air traffic: weather, mechanical, and/or systems failures will occur.
- financial matters: unplanned or unexpected expenses, that “bargain” or emotionally unplanned purchase threaten to derail precious resources.
- the matter of time: the need to breathe, to rest, to jump off the constant demands of life is real.
Why not PLAN for it? If you do not, someone or something else will…..
Rest – What is it – Really?
: a bodily state characterized by minimal functional and metabolic activities
a: freedom from activity or labor
b: a state of motionlessness or inactivity
c: the repose of death
: a place for resting or lodging
: peace of mind or spirit
at rest: resting or reposing, especially in sleep or death: quiescent, motionless: free of anxieties
Leaving aside the “repose of death” for this discussion, this rest thing is rather like nailing Jello to the wall. What to do? For nailing Jello to the wall, put it in a container. To achieve a place of rest, recognize and deal with the forces at work, then create the right structure.
Rest in this life is not the absence of structure but rather adjusting or forming a structure that promotes rejuvenation. Think of crossing a ravine on a rope or net bridge. Once you find the dynamic balance between the forces at work, you can cross with relative ease. If you ignore or fight the forces at work, the crossing will be a lot more work!
Telling Time Where to Go
Most of us, to some degree or another, organize and plan our work. Why not do the same for the rest? I know it seems weird to plan rest and recreation, but it does make these times even more restful.
Here are a few things to think about:
Daily rest. Preparing for that much-needed 7-8 hours of daily rest facilitates its effectiveness. Rather than flopping into bed after a quick face wash, experts recommend taking 30 minutes or so to transition.
I have an evening routine. It includes:
- shutting down or switching to night-time mode on electronics
- thinking over my day’s activities, journaling and planning for tomorrow
- verbalizing gratitude as I prepare for bed
- reading something recreational for a few minutes
Weekly Rest. We are also intentional about our weekend activities and endeavor to be intentional to change up the rhythm and incorporate activities that refresh and provide balance to our weekly schedule. We generally do not sleep in but may take some extra time for an afternoon lie-down. Sundays are for church with the evening reserved to ease into and prepare for the week.
Seasonal. Even with the above rest periods, seasonal breaks are needed. Give serious thought to what truly brings rest and rejuvenation to you and your family. Starting ahead allows for a realistic look at the budget, saving, and avoiding the after-vacation stress of debt.
We generally avoid peak-time travel for long trips. We prefer to indulge in a nearby day or long weekend trips. For instance to celebrate July 4 one year we:
- had breakfast with a new writer friend at a great local restaurant,
- enjoyed baby snow leopards and lemurs at Tanganyika Wildlife Park,
- checked out St. Marks Historic Church
- and then after a nap, biked down to fireworks at the Local Hyatt.
It was an amazing, refreshing, restful day in Wichita, KS
Again – Be Intentional!
The point of all this is intentionality, even with rest. It’s that dynamic balance thing. I use a tool to help pull this, my dreams, visions, goals, tasks and even surprises into focus.
It is, in fact, called the Full Focus Planner. I have used, with success, a lot of planners and benefited from each. I cut my teeth on the Franklin-Covey system and still use Microsoft Outlook for repetitive tasks. The Full Focus Planner pulls from several systems with its own very unique twist.
Last, I want to give the underlying secret to it all. It is found in the Gospel of Matthew spoken by Jesus: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
It’s all a choice.
How will you incorporate intentional rest into your life? What one thing will you do this week to rest? Please comment below.
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