Are you finding yourself teetering between productivity and perceived laziness? Do you guilt yourself for not taking this opportunity to finally clean out that closet you’ve been putting off for so long, get in the best shape of your life, cook an Instagram worthy dish, give 110% to your remote job, shine as your kids’ new teacher, find the energy for one more Zoom call with a friend, get out those watercolors…? If you are, you’re not alone.
We’re accustomed to doing, more so than just being. Doing, and even thinking about what we’re doing or not doing, can take us out of our current feelings of worry, grief, frustration, resentment, and even anger at the situation that we’re in, temporarily. But it is temporary, and can actually add to those feelings, rather than ultimately relieve them. Of course, being productive can be a positive thing at any time, but judging yourself for not getting to a long list of perceived “should-do’s” might be doing yourself a disservice. Allowing yourself to be present; to simply pause, breathe, accept, and relax is the greatest gift and most important “task” you can do right now. Louise Hay said, “The point of power is always in the present moment.”
We cannot underestimate the time and energy that is needed to process what is happening on a personal and global level right now. Take time to reflect and absorb the gravity of what we’re experiencing and find gratitude for the small and large blessings you may have also experienced today. It can be difficult to fight the natural and learned drive that wants to keep us busy, but down-time is equally important and even necessary. Find at least a half hour to take a bath, read, relax, rest, meditate, pray, or just be quiet. Schedule it into your day-that’s what I have to do in order to remember to do it. Allow yourself to just be-you deserve it.
Go to the Limits of Your Longing “…Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final…” by Rainer Maria Rilke.
Lisa Pasquinelli, PhD 