Earlier this week my daughter finished her last day of classes and is now in the midst of finals. She feels mainly ok about her four papers, and she’s studying for her one written final because she’s heard from people that it’s the hardest final they ever took. But while she knows how to prepare for the rigorous academic portions of school, there was one thing she was struggling with: for her history of rock music class, she needed to do a practical drum test. My daughter is really good at many things. She had a stellar high school tennis career, she was a deputy editor on her college paper, and a good leader whenever she has been elected to something. However drumming is just not something that comes easily. She said she clearly put more time this semester into practicing drumming than studying. (I’m pretty positive this is an exaggeration, but you get the gist.) So I am grateful that she had her practical drumming exam and that she received an A+. I am also grateful that this happened on the first day of finals so she wasn’t obsessing over it for the next week.

My journal prompt for this week was REST. Here’s how REST was used in the books that I’m reading:

  1. Sometimes I rest my head against her chest and listen- as I suppose all lovers have done from time immemorial- to the beating of her heart, and although I cherish the feel of her body and the sense of taking refuge there so near the core of her, it never fails to worry me a little. Kathryn Schulz
  2. “We’re safe, rest” he repeats. Javier Zamora
  3. His ambition was a little engine that knew no rest. William Herndon speaking about Abraham Lincoln in a book by Jon Meacham
  4. Will I be able to rest peacefully in the next life because they are at peace? Carolyn Huynh
  5. Make sure you schedule chunks of time for rest, recovery, food, family, and fun; if you only schedule work and obligations, something will break. Pedram Shojai
  6. Energy really does become depleted at some point, and it becomes necessary for us to rest or get some sleep. Fumio Sasaki
  7. Rest, cleanliness, routine. Dutch parents swear by these rules of thumb, and for good reason: that classic trio is a balm for bad days and a foundation for better ones.
  8. What is your vision for a bedroom that inspires rest and gratitude? Marie Kondo
  9. Leda and I beg him to take a day and rest. Natasha Solomons
  10. Silence takes getting used to…Our thoughts race, then slow, then come to rest in quiet. Julia Cameron
  11. We must all find places to explore in this world, but also places to rest. Janice MacLeod
  12. I know I’ll need rest if I want to work productively tomorrow. Emily Wibberley/Austin Siegemund-Broka

Here’s what I’m going to think about REST:

  1. What is true rest?
  2. Do we undervalue rest?
  3. Number 5 above is a good mantra- how many people follow it?
  4. Do people actually rest, or do they time waste?
  5. i love self help books because they often remind me of the little things that can help a day, or make it worse

36 thoughts on “Gratitude and Mindfulness: 12/10/22”

  2. How about the simple adage *give it a rest*? Clearly a different focus than what you posted but even in its bluntness reminds the receiver that there are times one simply needs to stop.

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  4. Oooh, rest vs time waste. That’s a good question. It may be hard to find the distinction.

    I’m glad your daughter’s drum test was first also, so she could devote the rest of her time studying for the other tests. I’m glad she aced it. She was probably more worried than she needed to be. She sounds like a perfectionist like me.

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  10. Resting has not come easy to me as I tend to be high energy and hated naps as a kid. But as I age I respect the concept of resting more and more. It’s vital to our health. I’ve been allowing myself time to rest and recover from this recent cold, so that’s improvement. It feels like a moral issue sometimes, as if business is superior to rest? I’m no longer under the influence of that misconception! Great post LA, hugs, C

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