I don’t know about you, but it was so much fun to read Abbi and Katelyn’s post about fall and what they were looking forward to. I hope it felt like you were reading a letter from them, because it certainly felt that way for me. Before I begin this post, I would like to add in a disclosure.

Disclosure, I’ll be using words like “self-care” and “rest.” Those words would be interchangeable in this post. I am aware that some people may not use them interchangeably but for the purpose of this post, they are interchangeable.

Alright, now we can talk about rest!

Last week, I talked about my favorite memories of fall and how it changes the pace. Katelyn challenged us to go outside and touch/smell fall. I’m in Texas, so fall weather had not fully come in (although I am already drinking my morning chai and wearing fall colors in preparation for my leggings, boots, and dresses). Despite Texas and its finicky weather, I am still looking forward to smell the crispness of fall weather. It slows me down and forces me to be still.

It’s hard to be still though. Especially coming off of summer where it is high-energy and filling your calendar up with fun activities. Then cooler weather hits and you go back inside or the kids go back to school or you go back to school (as a student or a staff member). I have told people that working in a school, my year starts in August and ends in May. June and July are limbo months. I know they are there, but I am not entirely certain if they truly exist on the calendar but I am thankful for them. But when August 1st hits, suddenly it is back to the “real world” with responsibilities, work, and the stresses that comes with it.

Which brings me back to self-care, to truly rest and to slow down your pace. Not to think about what the next thing to do at work or about the holidays, but to focus on the here and now.

Back when I was twenty-one, I worked at a summer camp where I made drinks for approximately 10,000 campers (not an exaggeration, it was a huge camp). During mealtimes, I was constantly running around the place, making certain we had enough pitchers of water and lemonade/sweet tea for the campers and if we didn’t, I was refilling pitchers. I began the practice of if I started feeling myself getting dizzy or overwhelmed, I would stop and say out loud, “Be still and know that I am God.”

Be still (breathe in) and know that I am God (breathe out).

It was a reminder to stop. Sometimes we get so busy that we are only thinking of our to-do list that we forget to take a break. That we forget to breathe. Last week, Abbi and Katelyn mentioned how the three of us met up in Pittsburgh. I really enjoyed that time and meeting those sweet ladies. I remember so vividly waiting for them in the bookstore and hugging them for the first time, it was a trip that I needed. It wasn’t just a vacation, it was also a work trip for me. I had the honor to speak at the National Apraxia Kids Conference as an individual with Childhood Apraxia of Speech. Although, I did enjoy talking to the parents and sharing my story about what it is like to live with a motor planning speech disorder, it was still work. I was tired after each day that meeting up with Abbi and Katelyn made it a vacation, it was self-care and a time to just rest and to laugh and to hang out with good friends. We had dinner, we walked along the river, and we saw puppies in a pet store. It was a great fun way to end a work trip and it rejuvenated me.

Because isn’t that what rest should do? Rejuvenate you.

I think so often we say “I am self-caring by watching x show.” But what happens? If you are anything like me, the episode ends and before you can reach for the remote, a new episode automatically queues up. So you watch that episode, then the next, then the next, and then it is bedtime and you still have laundry on your bed or dishes in your sink. You look at the dishes with disdained or you throw the laundry in a chair, because you still feel sluggish and tired.

I don’t think that’s true rest.

Throughout Jesus’ ministry on earth, he would tell the disciples that he was going to go and be with the Father. Meaning he was going to pray to God and spend time with God. Then he would come out and continue his ministry. Jesus was using God to refill his cup, so that he may pour onto others. That is what we should do too. That is what I should do too.

Maybe watching a TV show is truly resting and self-care for you. Maybe you can watch a show and feel energized to do chores, if that’s the case that is amazing. For me, though, I feel sluggish and I feel like I wasted my entire day. For me, truly resting is getting off the couch and physically walking away from what is troubling/overwhelming me. It is taking a walk and getting fresh air. It is getting dressed up and going to the ballet (just did that last night actually).

Lastly, being intentional to rest/self-care needs to be continuous, on-going. It is not for emergency-use. Everyday something is going to happen, the Enemy is going to try and distract us. I mentioned how seeing Abbi and Katelyn in Pittsburgh was great after my conference, but it was also great because I lost my grandmother a month earlier. I was grieving then and I am still grieving. During the past three months, I took care of myself by writing poetry, doing things that reminded me of her, and creating art. All those things helped me stay focus on my daily tasks.

But we are still human. We still stumble.

This past week, I hit a rough patch. It marked three months since Grandmother died and we closed on the house. I fell in a slump. When I realized (on a walk, no less) that my slump was probably because of Grandmother’s house. I became more intentional with taking breaks and putting myself first. I told my boss what was going on, I took breaks at work, I went to the ballet with friends, and although I still feel sad and still wish I could go back to that house and to her, I feel like I have strength to do things now. Strength that I know is from God and not from myself. Self-care is a continuous practice and occasionally we hit rough patches but with those healthy habits of rest, we can easily overcome those rough patches.

How do you self-care? How do you allow God to help you to rest?

Here are some verses that reminds me to go to God for rest.

Be still and know that I am God. Psalms 46:10

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit with me. Psalms 51:10

Elizabeth