After a long day of editing one of my novels, I was feeling brain dead and ready to crash in front of the TV. For whatever reason, I got a strong sense that I should take a walk instead. Trusting the intuition or God’s nudge or whatever it was, I grabbed my keys and headed out.
I wandered with no particular destination in mind. I had my headphones in, but rather than turn on an audio book or podcast, I just enjoyed the quiet. As I passed houses and apartments, I admired the architecture and wondered about the lives of the people who lived there.
I soon found myself in Capitol Park, one of my favorite haunts. It’s an island of curved paths, soaring trees, and green grass in the middle of bustling downtown Sacramento. I ambled slowly, without an agenda, soaking in the calm surroundings. Crossing the lawn in front of the striking dome of the State Capitol Building, I walked over to my favorite trees, a row of towering deodar cedars. Something about their massive girth, rough bark, giant limbs, and open foliage has always captured my imagination.
As I stood gazing up at these wooden monoliths, I thought of all that they had seen and withstood over their one-hundred and fifty years. The city has literally grown up around them. Storms have come and gone. Political leaders have changed. People have lived and died. Rain-soaked winters have yielded to sun-drenched summers. And still they stand.
It helped me see my problems in a new light. I often get worried and anxious about my day-to-day struggles. They can seem so big and important and long-lasting. But against the backdrop of these trees, somehow they began to feel smaller, more temporary, less weighty. As I stood beneath these ancient cedars, I could almost hear them whisper, Take a deep breath. Storms pass. Everything’s going to be okay.
I walked home feeling more full, open, and at peace than I have in a long time. I said a prayer of thanks for the message of the trees.
What I’m about to suggest is neither profound nor a miracle cure. It won’t make your problems go away, be they big or small. But if your day-to-day struggles are looming large or if you’re feeling a little overwhelmed, try taking a walk. Amble slowly. Let your thoughts wander. Take in whatever beauty you can find around you. Listen to the trees. You just might find a healthier perspective and a little peace. And you’ll have taken another step toward Becoming Yourself.
That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.
The Bible, 2nd Corinthians 4:16-18 (New Living Translation)
In college, I tackled what was, for me, a really difficult music performance major. I’d gone into college with almost no musical experience, and I was hanging on my by fingertips in classes that assumed years of training. I was working like mad just to survive the workload in a competitive field of study where you were never really done. There was always more practicing to do.
Things got better. I found myself more rested and able to push through the hard times knowing I had those breaks to look forward to. As time went on, I worked to expand the exercise into taking a full day off every week. In Jewish and Christian traditions, it’s called taking a Sabbath day. In the Bible, it’s even one of the 10 Commandments (see below). Why did it make one of the Big 10? I think it’s because God knew our human tendency to go like the Energizer Bunny. To constantly try to achieve something, to be busy. To become human doings vs. human beings.
One of the big objections I had to this idea early on was the belief that I had too much to do. That I didn’t have time to take a full day off. I was afraid I’d fall behind in my work and not accomplish as much as I wanted to. But I’ve come to realize that, over the long haul, the opposite is true. When I take a full day off, I am renewed, rested, and motivated for the rest of the week. I’ve found that I actually accomplish more in 6 energized days than in 7 tired days. And it’s a lot more enjoyable way to live.
Taking a day off a week isn’t being lazy. It’s not a wasted opportunity. It’s strategically taking the time to sharpen your ax. The concept of sabbath is recharging, renewing, and makes you more productive. It’s like taking a mini-vacation every 7 days. It gives you more joy in life and helps you keep perspective on what’s really important.