A Pause

For a while now I have been wanting to make a change. I have been struggling with figuring out my next adventure, how to get there, and even just figuring out how to find the time to figure it all out. As an anonymous poster recently commented on this blog, “I looked at [the Home Sweet Home] post from 2005 and your still complaining about the same things! So why don't you stop?!” And stop I have.

As of last Friday, I am officially on a three-month sabbatical from work. No work at all. And no travel, unless I want to, and the only for fun.

I cannot remember the last time that I had three whole months at home without work or school. Mostly I can’t remember because it was so long ago – like when I was ten. Before my working days started as a papergirl delivering the newspaper every day through rain and snow and sleet and ice; then as a checkout chick; then a janitor, telemarketer, administrative assistant, receptionist, communications officer, research assistant and finally an economic development consultant. Whew, I think it is time for a break.

My first week off I have focused on recovering from the to-be-expected cold (which always seems to arrive once the stress is off) and grasping the enormity of this opportunity. My natural tendency is to fill this time with as many non work-related activities as possible, trying to do everything I’ve ever wanted to do if only I had the time in three months. I want to waterproof my basement, re-do my backyard, learn to do an Eskimo roll (in a kyack), hike the Appalachian trail, spent time with friends and family, send out a Christmas letter (in July), and write a book. But just for a change, I am fighting the tendency to replace one hectic lifestyle with another.

My only objective for this time is to recover from a difficult work environment, hectic travel schedule and a secondary personal life squeezed in between. For me this translates into staying in one place and maximizing fun with friends and family. Not to say that I won't do some of the things on the list above, but I'm just not going to try and do it all. In fact, I am starting with a week of nothing - a four-day yoga and meditation retreat in rural Virginia. I can’t think of a better way to reprogram my over stimulated mind for more rest and relaxation than most of us will ever know.