Pause

Mentally shutting it all off. Recharging ones own battery by physically removing yourself from the daily grind, stress and demands of work and life for a while. A necessity in my opinion.

Many see a vacation as a luxury. Taking a break as a missed opportunity to make money. We have been programmed to believe that life is work, and without constant productivity we are somehow less than. Especially here in America it seems people don’t like to take time away, and if they do they limit themselves to maybe a week… hardly enough time to truly decompress.

I often catch myself in this trap, believing I need to be productive at all times, whether at work or at home. Just sitting quietly on the couch with a cup of coffee for example feels like time wasted where I could be vacuuming or doing the dishes. Vacations away from home force you to slow down, they put you into an environment where you don’t need to clean or organize. It forces you to simply be. And once your mind reaches a point of relaxation your body physically changes and heals itself.

Many years of working within the animal welfare field has found me bringing my work home. Whether physically, in the form of foster animals, or mentally as in the cases I’m working and can’t stop thinking about. Always second guessing the day I just had and not being able to shut it off when I leave work. As I get older now, I have learned to get better at the shutting off part. To leave work behind and not allow it to creep into my personal home life. It is difficult to do with such an emotionally charged job, but I’m getting better at it.

I have also valued my time off more and make sure to schedule as much vacation as I can. I recently returned from another trip to Namibia, which was the much needed break my mind craved. This time my sister, who lives in Namibia, was getting married and the time spent there was with family and things to do that took my mind completely away from work and life here. I realize how fortunate I am to have family in a far off place that I can fly to and stay with for any length of time. But even if you don’t know someone as far away as Africa, make a plan to leave home. Get out of the zone where people and problems can still find you. Simply vanish for a while. Your mind and body will thank you.

Just last week I found myself in the vast space of the African bush, driving along a desolate dirt road, and passing a herd of goats on the side of the road. Their shepherd stood in the shade of a nearby acacia tree, keeping an eye on the herd and seemingly lost in thought. As I passed by in my air conditioned vehicle, continuing on and leaving a large cloud of dust behind, I couldn’t help but feel envious. This man had clothes on that seem to be his only pair, he likely lives in a makeshift house miles away and doesn’t own a car, but he also doesn’t have a credit score to worry about. He doesn’t have a morning commute in a crowded subway or gridlocked roads to get to a job he hates. He doesn’t have to meet productivity quotas and employee reviews to advance his career. He simply gets up with the sun, walks his herd of goats along the side of the road all day so they can graze, and then returns them before sunset to finish his night by sitting around a fire with friends and family.

Do we really have it all figured out? Just because we are monetarily wealthier than this shepherd, do we really live the better life?

It seems that by creating a life of education, financial stability, and luxury we also create a world we then want to escape from. We pay for these creature comforts with mental and physical exhaustion.

After the wedding planning, the family time, and then the big day had come and gone, my husband and I took a few days off to visit a lodge by ourselves. The lodge is situated in the Erongo mountain region of Namibia, at least an hour from the nearest town. It was so far off the beaten path that my husband began to seriously doubt it exists and I, as the navigator of our adventure, was leading him into the middle of nowhere to get lost. Alas we found the beautiful lodge tucked at the foot of a mountain. It was one of the most wonderful places I have visited in Namibia to date. The rooms are small bungalows built in a row leading down the hill from the lodge, each offering a private veranda area with unobstructed views of the bush veld. One afternoon I found myself curled up on one of the large chairs on our veranda, book and glass of wine in hand, looking out onto this scene and wishing I never ever had to leave. As my husband took his afternoon nap in the room I sat and watched a light rain start to fall onto the dry landscape around me. There was no sound of traffic, there was no internet, there were no phones, there were no other people. It was one of the most peaceful moments in my recent life that I can remember. And it makes you think. It makes you analyze life, what we have, what we want and what we wish to change.

Going back to work after being so far away always makes me realize how truly big the world is. How continents and people and cultures can all be on this same planet, and yet be so different from one another. I would be lying if I didn’t admit that one day I would just want to stay in Namibia forever.

Pushing pause on everyday life is, in my opinion, a must. I guess I wanted to write this post to share my recent experience with the pause button, and to encourage anyone reading this to also make it a priority.