It’s hard to feel guilty about relaxing when the power is out

Mother Nature put me in her version of a straight-jacket a few days ago when she cut off electricity, phone, and internet services with one of her powerful storms.

My home was without power for about 36-hours.
No texts. No emails. No social media. No news feeds. Nothing for 36-hours. I had entered a forced relaxation zone.

Dare I say it was… relaxing?

At first, I felt like I had a straight-jacket on. No access to outside noise was jarring and frustrating. Like a lot of other people, I rely on my phone and computer to communicate with others and entertain me. My first thought was “what the hell am I supposed to do now?”

My F.O.M.O. even kicked in. I wondered what I was missing by being disconnected from the world. Then, one of my piles of books called to me. “Read us, Jennifer! Read us!”

Many of you probably have a similar stack of books on your nightstand, desk, coffee table, and/or piled on the floor next to any of those surfaces. These are books that you want to read, but can’t seem to find the time in between one of your favorite romance authors.

Turning the pages of these books for hours felt scandalous and forbidden. Snacking on peanut butter pretzels and sipping flavored waters, as a breeze flowed through my living room windows… Wait. Why don’t I do this more often?

Darn. The power’s back on.

It was great to have the world’s most important invention ever – air conditioning – back and cooling me off. However, I was truly disappointed in my need/requirement to have an excuse to take a break and just enjoy a couple of books. Giving my body and mind the opportunity to refill their depleting wells shouldn’t require any justification.

When I reconnected with the world, I did notice that it went on without me. There were still social media posts to pass judgement on and nutty clients to appease.

I could wait for another destructive storm to blow through town again, or I can make this kind of relaxation a regular thing. Clearing space on my calendar seems like the smarter option.

Published On: October 4th, 2020 / Categories: Burn Out & Stress /