work – noun \ˈwərk\
: a job or activity that you do regularly especially in order to earn money
: the place where you do your job
: the things that you do especially as part of your job
__________
I took a nice long break over the past two weeks of holidays. My to-do list was trimmed down to essentials only. And for several days in a row, I did no work. No writing, editing, marketing, emailing. No cooking, cleaning, straightening, sorting. No driving, arranging, organizing, managing.
During that season, I mostly shopped only for things I wanted, not needed. Or for no things at all, just looking. I ate food prepared by others, and I read for entertainment and sustenance, not “have to’s.” I played games and watched movies. I laughed hard and cried very little. Twice I gathered supplies and made things when it would have been easier to buy them.
And I slept. Oh how I slept. I fell asleep early some nights. I slept in late some mornings. I took naps occasionally.
Then, sometime around last Friday, something changed. I became irritable, irascible. I snapped at my husband and cried in the bathroom. When we took down the Christmas tree, I rearranged the furniture three times before it felt right. I carried two baskets of laundry up two flights of stairs all at once and felt like a martyr for doing so. For hours I wondered what was happening, why my season of rest was ending so miserably.
As the day progressed, along with my crankiness, eventually the reason became clearer.
For starters, Steve also had been off work for several days, and with the boys home from school and family members visiting over the holidays, I had had little time to myself lately. Taking 30 minutes alone for a long, hot shower and a little pampering did wonders for my surliness.
But as I reapplied make-up and blow-dried my hair, the biggest reason became startlingly apparent: I was ready to get back to work. Not just quickly checking email or spending a few hours wrapping up the year for clients. I needed the early wake up, the structure of a day’s worth of hours, the purposefulness of productivity, the satisfaction of quitting time, and the discipline of fitting in the chores after dinner. I longed for the tired feeling after a day of work rather than the sluggishness of days that all ran together.
Don’t get me wrong. The downtime was a Godsend. A gift. A necessary stopping after a busy season of going.
But now, I’m ready to go again. I’m ready to get back to work.
__________
WORD COUNT: 404
What’s YOUR word of the week? Drop it into the comments section, or share it on this week’s Facebook post. If you post about your word on your blog, please slip the link into a comment below so I can stop by and join you.
Photo by Cindee Snider Re, used with permission. Definitions of my word of the week are from Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online.
“Work is the backbone of a properly conducted life, serving at once to give it shape and to hold it up.” — Anne Truitt, “Daybook: The Journal of an Artist”
Glad you had that long rest, and lots of sleep. Glad you’re back.
Love that quote, Laura! Thank you for sharing.
Mmmm…right there with you, Charity, for different reasons, but the same need for rhythm and familiar routine. After two back-to-back weeks in-patient with two of my girls for infusions, we entered Christmas days later — family, gatherings, people, conversation, and I felt depleted, needing time to simply let it all process, time to think, to breathe, to regain my footing. I had nothing left to give and longed for familiar routine, for hands that know their tasks by muscle memory, offering me time, even in the midst of homeschooling and caring for the house and all the medical. Familiar routines of laundry, cooking, cleaning, reading with my growing-up kids as we work through their final years of school, knowing that next year I’ll school only two, and the next year only one, a winding down, a reminder to savor the moments we’re together. Rhythm of the familiar graces me with perspective, breathing space, moments to breathe deep and drink in the beauty. Moments to taste and see that He is God and always He is good.
And as always, it’s such an honor to share my images with you.
Cindee – Thanks for sharing some of your rhythms and routines. I remember when I was very sick and going through chemo and radiation a few years back, the only thing I really wanted was the rhythm of the day-to-day. I’m so glad you are find your space to breathe deeply. And I love using your images. Each time I pull up your Flickr page, it lets me breathe a little deeper!
I see it in your tags, words like “rhythm” and “rest.” We talk about it On Being a Writer because we’re living it, experimenting, living and learning (and benefiting). We are made for work, right? So not only is the downtime (rest) a Godsend; perhaps the work is, too. 🙂
Ann – I love your comment. Yes, work and rest are gifts. I think I would have gone completely bonkers if I hadn’t been able to get back to work!