John Morgan Everyone needs a ‘little sabbath’ rest now and then
Everyone needs a little sabbath these days.
In the stressful days in which we live, it sometimes feels as if we are overwhelmed at every point with threats of coming down with a virus, losing a job or house, or having to stay at home, unable to get out to stores, or even visit family or friends.
In times such as these, a little sabbath might help to get us through. A sabbath is simply time to rest from our labors.
But how do we take a rest when we feel that’s all we do cooped up in our homes? Here are some simple ways to do so without risking your health or that of others.
Take a walk. I did so this morning in my own neighborhood. This time I did not walk for exercise alone but to practice being attentive. I was amazed to see what I often drove or walked by — a small stream, flowers, blue sky with intricate white cloud formations.
Sit outside. Stop, look, and listen.
Find a good book to read slowly. Instead of trying to rush through, take a passage or two and let them sink in. I have found the meditations of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius to be very helpful. Leader of a vast empire, Aurelius took time to meditate on his life and times.
Try keeping a journal. Just jot down a sentence or two when you want to remember a thought or feeling. Keep it simple; it will complex all by itself.
Wander around aimlessly. I find taking a car ride down roads I have never traveled opens up new vistas. Sometimes the same unplanned change of venue works on us, too.
Listen to music. Classical works best for me, but find the kind of music that helps you center down and even drift mentally.
Contact someone by phone you haven’t spoken to for some time just to seek how they are doing.
It takes practice to learn how to observe little sabbaths. We are so accustomed to fast tracks we don’t know how to slow down.
There are days, even hours, that past slowly, when nothing seems to be happening. On such days I think of Henry David Thoreau who went to live by himself near Walden Pond because he wanted to experience life and not rush to seize it. He wrote in his notebook these words: “Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you. But if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder.”
Thoreau’s wisdom helps me stay on the path of a more tranquil life. Perhaps refraining from chasing a butterfly I would do better to sit quietly and wait for it to come and sit softly on my shoulder. It’s a lifelong lesson I am slow to learn — seek that which is truly important first within where it has always been waiting for you to pay attention.