On my Instagram, I’ve been following this account called The Nap Ministry, a performance art project by Tricia Hersey about how resting is a form of political resistance. She posts about how rest was something practiced by the leisure class as they exploited the working and enslaved classes (with both economic and racial inequities). Today there’s an emphasis on hustle, on being busy, on having side gigs. That’s at least in part because it’s hard for many folks to get a regular, steady 9–5 job with benefits that pays the bills without side gigs, but also because being busy is glorified in our society. Lean out, Hersey argues—lie down, and reclaim your right to rest.
I’m thinking about that today because we’ve just had a long weekend, heading into a week off for me. My day job has been incredibly busy as we race to get a big project out the door. (It’s not quite out yet, but my colleagues are handling it, thank goodness.) At the same time I’ve been doing edits for the next Turtleduck Press novel, coming from KD Sarge in just a few months. And I even ended up spending Saturday afternoon working on a piece of the day-job project that arrived, naturally, on the Friday afternoon before a long weekend.
After all that, I’m feeling more exhausted and brain-dead than I have in a long time. I spent the rest of Saturday staring blankly at things. Sunday and Monday I started to feel human again, so I lounged around making a half-hearted pretense of doing house chores, but mostly, just resting. I thought about running errands or going somewhere fun (it’s summer! this city has a waterfront and some lovely parks! summer is short!) but in all honesty, I knew it wasn’t happening. Patio + shade + iced drink + book = bliss.
Honestly, that’s my goal for the rest of the week too, just in a different location. There will hopefully be some hiking and swimming and lots of trees to rest my eyes on. There might be writing if I’m lucky, but I suspect recharging will have to happen first. Unfortunately, I’ve only got a week to rest, and then it’s back into the fray.
There’s got to be a better way, but if there is, I haven’t found it yet. Until then, I’ll be napping. How about you?
I have health issues that have forced me to go slower, even losing me my last paying job. So I’m really sensitive to all the “be productive! get more done! how to be efficient!” stuff that is out there, and I have to remind myself that life requires more balance than that, and that my body in particular does not thrive on rush, stress, and being super busy.
I hope your week off is wonderfully restorative!