I vowed to take it easier in October, after way overdoing it several months in a row. But before I had a chance to voluntarily do that, nature intervened and I was hit with strep throat and then a nasty cold. Yuck. “Taking it easier” was thrust upon me.
If you’ve been reading this blog (or studying with me) for any length of time, you know I go on and on and on about the need to PAUSE.
“Take a day OFF,” I prod. “It will make you more productive!”
“Pause before you eat,” I nag. “You’ll feel better!”
“When you’re too tired to carry on, lie down,” I pester. “You won’t be so exhausted at the end of the day!” As if I have it all figured out.
As if the sole purpose of the pause is to improve the time when I’m not pausing.
But what if the PAUSE is where the good stuff happens? The PAUSE is the place of inspiration, of creativity, of discovering the unexpected.
Last Wednesday I admitted that I was sick. I dropped my kids off at school and retreated to bed with a cup of tea (having cancelled my appointments). In the afternoon, only slightly more ambitious, I took the children to a newly rebuilt playground in our neighborhood and parked myself on a bench in the sun while they explored. And there, in the forced PAUSE of that icky cold, the ideas started to flow. Musings on various directions I want to explore in my work. Ideas about writing I want to do. Thoughts on the future of my business and how I might be able to help people.
And I felt a rush of gratitude for the cold and the PAUSE it forced on me. Maybe next time I can achieve that without the help of snot.