The Art of Rest

For most of my life, I’ve had this inner belief that I was made to change the world. I have never been satisfied with ordinary and, quite frankly, shuddered at the thought of a normal life. I was made for greatness and determined to do whatever it took to live a spectacular life. I’ve surrounded myself with dreamers and doers and scrambled to pick up the pace in order to achieve. I love the thrill of achievement and pursuit of the extraordinary.

Except when I don’t.

Sometimes chasing the spectacular can leave me breathless and burnt out, in desperate need of rest. Amidst the thrill of the chase, I find myself aching for quiet. For stillness. For peace. Sometimes I need to not change the world and to simply be.

To be. Present in the moment that I’m in, exactly as I am.

To be. Inviting the stillness and embracing the unknown.

To be. Quiet. Unassuming. Ordinary. Me.

I’m between jobs right now, having just moved to a new city. I moved my belongings and then left for an extended trip to Oregon for two weddings. After the busyness of the first wedding weekend, my days have had so much space. I feel the internal pressure to busy myself, to figure out finances, to find work, and to solve things. But in my heart, I know that I know that I know that this space right now a gift and it is for a limited time. I am being offered the gift of rest and I would be a fool to reject it.

As I am embracing this season of quiet, I’m rediscovering that my value and my worth are not in what I do or how much I achieve or what great things I accomplish. Rather, I, in and of myself, am enough. Whether I’m achieving greatness or sitting on the couch, I’m enough.

While I don’t think my desire to change the world is going anywhere, I do find my perspective shifting. Maybe, instead of seeking a spectacular life, I’m going to seek a meaningful one. And I can find as much meaning in the thrill of achievement as I can in simple act of remaining present.

And that, my friends, is enough.