The anatomy of rest

Rest can take many forms.

When we think of rest, we may tend to think of it in terms of the physical - sleeping, napping. But rest can also be:

• Mental

• Sensory

• Creative

• Emotional

• Spiritual

If you’re relationally depleted, sleep won’t likely fix this. But spending time with someone who uplifts you vs drains you may.

If you’re creatively tapped out, again sleep may not be the answer, but engaging in play or an activity that sparks delight, may fill the well.

Rest is part of our design. It not a nice-to- have, but an essential part of our overall health, wellbeing and creative flourishing.

Proverb: Rest is part of the work.

Seattle cat

Creative Recovery

We often resist what we most need.

I’m writing from a cafe in Seattle. A last minute trip I booked reluctantly, mostly because I’m out of the habit of traveling—especially alone. 

I have good friends here. And I’ve lived here before. I love this city. But it’s been a while since I’ve been, since I’ve traveled alone. And even the pull of friends I adore and a city I love was almost not enough to get me to book the ticket.

It can be like this. 

Life can get routine. Or the opposite—overwhelming. Both of these can leave us stuck. In mental and physical ruts that are tough to get out of. 

But here I sit. A chai latte and a blue Seattle sky. (Yes, blue!) 

And I’m reminded that as humans we need things. A change of scenery, time with people we love, the novelty of being in a new place, a chance to explore.

And that sometimes we are tricked into thinking these things are somehow self indulgent? 

No doubt traveling is a privilege. And having friends is also not a thing I take for granted. 

But our creative life depends renewal. This means that the things that renew us are important: to our wholeness, our aliveness, our joy.

Resist what you need at your peril.