A Celebration of Rest

after the holiday season

Originally published on January 8th, 2025

Welcome to wholistic wellbeing post #2. The soundtrack for this post is Vijay Iyer Trio - Mystic Brew

The holiday season has come to an end. This particular holiday season has been very special for me for three reasons:

First, we opened the season by hosting our family for Thanksgiving.

Second, we closed out the season by hosting our family and friends for New Year’s Eve and the end of Kwanzaa.

Third, one of my closest relatives and best friends celebrated a milestone birthday and words can’t describe how much fun it was to celebrate!

So now in these first days of January, I am focused on resting my way into the new year.

I used to see rest as an inconvenience. Many years ago, I even had the CEO of the company I worked for tell me that my long drives to visit family didn’t count as a vacation and that I was not being a hero by minimizing my vacation time and then using said time to visit family rather than recharge. No shade to family. I am often rejuvenated and charged up by connecting with my family, but the CEO was right.. it isn’t the same as rest.

I read a book a while ago called, “The Power of Full Engagement,” by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz.

https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-power-of-full-engagement-managing-energy-not-time-is-the-key-to-high-performance-and-personal-renewal-jim-loehr/951336?ean=9780743226752

The authors assert that capacity diminishes both with overuse and underuse and as such, “we must balance energy expenditure with intermittent energy renewal.” They lament that “sadly, the need for recovery is often viewed as evidence of weakness rather than as an integral aspect of sustained performance.” They posit that “the richest, happiest and most productive lives are characterized by the ability to fully engage in the challenge at hand, but also to disengage periodically and seek renewal.

I am spiritually charged up by connecting with my family over this holiday season. But physically, it is clear to me that I need rest. This doesn’t mean that I don’t start off the new year with all the verve and vigor, with which one wants to start a year. What it does mean is that for the next couple of weeks, I will be very deliberate about slowing down my pace, paying attention to my bodily health and grounding myself. Here are a few ways I intend to do this:

1. I took the day off from working out, even though I am in the midst of training for a May 2025 event.

2. This week in particular, I plan to move somewhat slowly. This offers me a bonus benefit, as one of my most meaningful lessons of 2024 was to “slow everything down” in order to hear the voice of the divine.

3. This coming weekend, I intend to chill out by reading and listening to music for hours. Naps will be welcome with no resistance, whatsoever.

By the end of the weekend, I expect to be as physically recharged as I am spiritually.

Question for the audience:

I’m often at a loss for effective ways to slow down and relax. Music and reading usually helps. I do like to take walks to unwind. What are some of the ways you relax and rest when you need to?

Thanks for reading and be you well,

~Wellbeing Grant