Last month, a podcaster I was listening to said two things about time and resting that I had to apply this week. “Longevity is important; take time to rest.” AND “You have to take the time to sharpen your sword to cut down the maximum amount of trees.”
Last year I had several surgeries and physical therapy visits and an unplanned hospital stay. Since then, every time I took off was to attend doctor’s appointments or wait for people to come repair issues in my home. Even my weekends were packed with personal obligations and doing things for everyone else – but myself. I couldn’t remember the last time I had a day off when other people weren’t demanding my time, and focused only on what I wanted to do. I realized that I was becoming burnt out on the treadmill I was running on, and I had to do more than just brief snippets of self-care. I had to break down and make time for me.
Sometimes you have to stand up to everyone and take the time to think only about you and what you want. It’s okay to be selfish. Like the old folks say, “You can’t pour from an empty cup.” The podcaster added on to that idea: “Fill your cup first, and then you fill everyone else’s cup from your excess.” If people get mad about you taking time for yourself, as Mel Robbins is famous for saying – “Let them, and then let me.”
If people get mad, resort to emotional blackmail, or act inappropriately in other ways, you don’t have to fall for it. Allow yourself to express your anger to them, and if they don’t want to listen, express that anger in a journal entry. Get the anger out of your system, so you can release the pain and disappointment and then go on to enjoy the quiet, restful day you deserve. Because when everyone else is gone, all you have is yourself and your creator. If you don’t love yourself enough to take care of yourself, you won’t appreciate the life the creator gave you. You will be bitter and angry, hateful and spiteful. Been there, wrote the book, not going back there.
Until next time!
R.R. Peace, Author and Poet 