Time is of the essence. Everyone wants more it and feel like they don’t have enough of it in one day.
How’s your time? What do you do with it?
I was recently reading a book about marriage, quality time and how to cultivate it. It’s a book by: Dr. Steve Stephens called: “20 (Surprisingly Simple) Rules and Tools for a GREAT MARRIAGE.” Stephen has a chapter he writes about watching less TV in order to salvage a marriage. It makes me think about what my husband and I currently do at home. Stephen has good reasons why it’s important to spend time away from the TV. He gives three excellent reasons. Music can be an excellent replacement. Here are the three benefits: a) it intensifies intimacy; b) it deepens connections; c) it builds priceless memories. My husband and I find music sets the mood for relaxation in the home after a very stressful day. We also take time most evenings to connect around ten p.m. to make sure we take care of our marriage.
I have one channel I really like to watch regularly. (HGTV) . I do really well without TV because I like quiet. So it’s not hard to figure out when to watch it or how much. I love a quiet evening between seven and nine o’clock, just exploring or researching titles and topics and trying to cultivate my craft. I also enjoy writing my book. I take up quite a bit of time in the evenings doing so. And since no children are around, I am able to do so quite well. Everyone doesn’t have such a luxury, however.
So why write about REST & RELAXATION? Because rest and relaxation has everything to do with caring for your mind, and your best work comes from resting your mind and taking care of you. Pacing is so necessary for being able to moderate your time. To pace means to find balance and preserve time. I do tend to gravitate towards it when I am beginning to become tense. I might have a cup of tea or take a quick nap, or simply read a newspaper or a blog to relax my mind. Oftentimes your body will tell you where it needs to be more relaxed. If your feet hurt, you may need to soak them, if your back hurts, stretch it.
If you are a writer, there are three necessary things you need in order to take care of the lifestyle of writing:
You will need:
a) A good night’s sleep so your body and mind are rested and you think clearly. When you don’t get the proper rest, it can really affect your entire day.
b) You need to take care of your body, because rest and health go hand in hand. You can feel better if you eat foods that offer you better energy and a better mindset for writing;
c) And lastly, you need good order and structure time. You need a routine that has writing squeezed in it, even if it’s for an hour or thirty minutes a day. Writing once a day helps make you eager to write again, and looking forward to the next time. It also helps to have your day ordered in terms of a schedule so you can schedule in times to make sure the writing gets completed. I had to think about my pace and ince I paced my day, I would then consider the best time of the day to write and had the most energy, then write!
