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It feels good to rest
Apr. 24th, 2020 12:05 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rosefoxHello, friends! Today is Friday, which means that Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest, begins at sundown. In this time of "what day is it???" and feeling frantically desperately overworked yet stir-crazy, I've been really cherishing Shabbat's weekly reminder to take time for things that are restful and restorative. For me that means sleep and family time (sometimes together, flopping down on the couch for a big cuddle-nap) and spiritual practices that help me feel grounded. Sometimes I join my synagogue's online services or a Saturday afternoon Zoom knitting circle, but mostly I put down my phone and close my laptop and live in the tangible world as much as I can.
When I remember, I cue up an appropriate soundtrack. Miqedem's rousing hard rock rendition of Psalm 150 is my early Friday evening anthem as I clean the house and get in the Shabbat mood. Late at night on Friday, I sometimes listen to Keith Jarrett's Köln concert, which carries fond childhood memories of quiet evenings reading or playing board games with jazz on the stereo. On Saturday, I might put on this Johnnie Lawson video of a forest full of birdsong and let it play as an audio track (though the video can be nice to watch too). The April weather here in NYC has been unseasonably cold and miserable, no one's going outside much, and listening to birds chirp is a lovely low-key way to bring some nature into the house.
What's helping you feel restored right now? What's something you've been doing, or could do, that would help you hit pause on your daily routine and get in touch with some deeper parts of you that might be feeling in need of a little attention? Are you able to make time for rest?
When I remember, I cue up an appropriate soundtrack. Miqedem's rousing hard rock rendition of Psalm 150 is my early Friday evening anthem as I clean the house and get in the Shabbat mood. Late at night on Friday, I sometimes listen to Keith Jarrett's Köln concert, which carries fond childhood memories of quiet evenings reading or playing board games with jazz on the stereo. On Saturday, I might put on this Johnnie Lawson video of a forest full of birdsong and let it play as an audio track (though the video can be nice to watch too). The April weather here in NYC has been unseasonably cold and miserable, no one's going outside much, and listening to birds chirp is a lovely low-key way to bring some nature into the house.
What's helping you feel restored right now? What's something you've been doing, or could do, that would help you hit pause on your daily routine and get in touch with some deeper parts of you that might be feeling in need of a little attention? Are you able to make time for rest?