Claiming a Vacation

I came to Aberdeen with some goals. I won't bore you with the list, but I do want to mention one of the important ones before this term comes to a close.

Resting is something I have been historically really terrible at doing. Last year, I finally began to seek out space to rest. That process (and it was a process) to seeking restful space unearthed a new problem: once I was in that space, I didn't know how to engage with it.

I've done a lot of thinking and writing around how I occupy the different spaces in my life, how I live and move and am in church or coffee shops, in monasteries, at conferences, in the classroom, in Scottsdale, and walking through the inner-city. I've started paying more attention to liminal space - those in between places - and how much that I not only need to be more present in them, but how I need them in order to be present in other spaces.

With all of those different spaces filling up my life, I wonder even more how to rest in them. Especially in ministry contexts, resting seems to be something we talk about constantly, something worth investing in, worth working at, and seeking out. And yet, I found last year that I don't know how to rest. Not really. It turns out resting is more active than I'd been lead to believe, and it's not just about sitting still - though I admit that I can't even do that well.

Looking ahead to this summer, next fall, and beyond, I realized that the time between Friday (tomorrow) and the Friday a week later (the day before I leave for PHX) is the most substantial amount of time I have carved out with nothing planned for a while.

I have claimed it as vacation time, resting time. Time for not answering emails or making phone calls. Time for jumping on a train through the Highlands because I can and because it's beautiful. Time for myself alone, and for myself with a good friend. Time for thinking and breathing, for hiking and sleeping, for eating good food. For actively seeking out things that bring me joy and renewal. For resting.

Check back for pictures next week, and I'll see many of you on the other side of this week!