Recalibrating the importance of rest

A couple of weeks ago I started noticing how often I justify my need to rest. My over achieving tendencies have not been entirely unknown to me but how deeply entrenched they have become in my life did surprise me. Early on this year, I came upon the word ‘Ease’ in one of my meditations. As if becoming aware of this option for the very first time, my whole body leapt towards this feeling state. Since then I have been intentionally asking for it in my life and aligning myself with it by saying no to the many things that I think I should be doing.

The act of saying ‘no’ is a challenge in itself for many of us. What will people think of us? Shouldn’t we be nice? When we build a lifetime of saying ‘yes’ to others we often find our own self buried under a very heavy ‘no’. Furthermore, if there is an issue of self worth present; where we feel our personal value tied in with our success, or our material wealth, then the ‘no’ to ourself can become almost invisible… much like how we are feeling inside, in the first place. The need for acceptance and the drive to excel can often leave us grossly underestimating the importance of rest.

Therein lies the problem. Our perception of what is valuable as well as how to achieve it.

Just as we live in a world of contrast, day/ night, summer/ winter, desert/ ocean, so must we understand the importance of rest in conjunction with work. Rest as we see it today, is not just sleep. It is so much more. Doing must remain in balance with being. The place of being is a magical place where we can listen, understand and heed the wishes of our heart. It is the birthplace of imagination and dreams. A place that offers us much needed relief from a non stop world. Stepping into a state of being not only allows us to centre ourself and remember that we have a choice in creating the life we want, it also offers us the tools with which to make that happen.

What use is it to struggle in an over committed, so called successful life if we are too burnt out to celebrate it as it happens? Or worse, to have a moment of clarity when we finally give ourself permission to relax, only to discover that it was never our idea of success to begin with.

How would it make you feel if every time you had to make a difficult choice, you could pick ease? Isn’t it time we stopped complicating things and value what is offered to us free?

Best
Afshan x