Friday, May 3, 2019

Giving yourself permission to slow down

Sometimes we just need time. Not a huge amount of it. Just some moments to reconnect with who we actually are. If we don’t, we begin to become a shell of who we actually are. And that’s just sad.
Giving ourselves the permission to slow down is not selfishness, but courage, wisdom, humility, and diligence; courage to say no and stand one’s ground; wisdom to save precious energy and preserve one’s spirit; humility to know the world doesn’t revolve around us; diligence to do nothing when it would be easier to be doing something.
Life can get so hectic, that amid tasks to be done we forget about the people we are doing them for. We forget about the objective of life. And if only we could connect with another human being, and become vulnerable within the moment once more, embracing the simplicity of just being there, we would be reconnected with God too.
In the hustle and bustle of life, this life that is so frenetic, where people of every sphere work too hard, we place so much pressure on ourselves.
What if we learned to say no? Would we feel justified? How would we respond if people were to condemn us for taking our opportunities as self-care? Doesn’t the person who besmirches our need of rest offend love? Isn’t it the case of them failing us, not us failing them? Are we so easily exploited? Can we not take the day (or the hour) and disappear?
One of the best skills of self-care is to become inaccessible; to vanish off the face of the earth for a day, and find ourselves in a foreign spot, safe and secure, where we might meet God again. Of course, we need to know that our loved ones are adequately cared for or we tip over into worries and concerns that leave us imprisoned no matter where we are.
Giving ourselves permission to slow down is taking up the cudgel of immediate need. This spiritual health we so often take for granted is a key asset that we must protect.
Giving ourselves permission to slow down is not only about taking time out, of course, but it’s actually practicing a slower, more relaxed pace of living. The demands don’t change, but efficiencies are possible, and taking the courage to say no more often is the start of higher empowerment.
Driving slower, walking slower, breathing slower, eating slower; all these and more have direct health benefits, especially when we consider that we only slow down because we’ve deliberately chosen to.
In this uncaring age, the bravest thing you may ever do for yourself is take that chance on yourself to provide care for yourself. Such care is not entitlement as this world looks at entitlement; remember it’s courage, it’s wisdom, it’s humility, it’s diligence.
It’s virtuous.
Those who are brave and dare,
are those who do their self-care.


Photo by Natalia Figueredo on Unsplash

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