by Sunny Simon
Years ago I lived in Canada for a short time. What I remember most about that period of my life were the long and lazy Sundays. It seemed as if that glorious day went on forever and ever. There was time for worship, a drive out to the country to pick up fresh corn, an invigorating hike with my lover, or a day spent curled up by the fire reading a good book. One of the factors I believe contributed to making Sunday a day of luxurious respite from the hectic day-to-day pace was the community shut-down. The only place open for business was a minute grocery store called “Mac’s Milk.” It served as an emergency outlet in case you needed milk for the kids’ cereal on Monday morning or bread for lunches.
Now if I were to revisit that Canadian town on a Sunday I could shop at the mall, pick up my dry cleaning, drive-through a Starbucks for a non-fat cappuccino or complete my weekly grocery shopping. These activities are of course identical to what I could accomplish in the valley or just about anywhere. It took some reminiscing about my Canadian experience to realize somewhere along my life’s journey I overlooked the magic of designating a day to things totally unrelated to my ever increasing “to do” list. I decided it was time to turn back the clock.
It does not take a supreme amount of effort for me to forego a mall visit or a trip to the supermarket for provisions on Sunday. What tends to invade my solitude is an overriding technology connection. Recouping the sanity of a relaxing day with no agenda other than to ponder and dream in blissful peace meant imposing a technology ban. For me it meant no tweeting, no checking in with my Facebook friends, or making new LinkedIn connections. I had a serious discussion with myself about shutting off my cell phone and refusing to boot-up my laptop no matter how much it called to me.
It worked! During the course of last Sunday I found time to take a brief power nap, a leisurely bike ride to nowhere, treat my dog to a park visit and putter around the kitchen which I find highly therapeutic. Of course I DVR’d the Goodwife and quickly stashed the remote to avoid temptation. Want to reclaim your day of rest? Follow suit by powering down and calling it a day off with benefits.
Sunny Simon is the owner of Raise the Bar High Life and Career Coaching. More about Sunny at www.raisethebarhigh.com
