Reclaiming your health, naturally

‘Divert daily, withdraw weekly, abandon annually’. 

This quote is attributed to Rick Warren and has to do with taking care of yourself. He used it when counseling ministers on burnout. Warren encouraged them to take the time to recharge- spiritually, mentally, physically and emotionally. 

I first heard it when my friend Debby Brown (the quilter, not the porn star) gave a speech at Toastmasters. Debby gives amazing speeches and has a wonderful stage presence. I don’t remember everything she said (TBI problems!), but the quote stuck with me.

Divert Daily. This is to remind you to take some time every day to do something you enjoy. Just a few minutes can be enough- time for yourself. It could be something that energizes you, replenishes you or just makes you feel good. Some of my ‘divert daily’ activities include working out, reading, enjoying nature (just sitting the backyard watching the wildlife) and meditation. 

Withdraw Weekly. Set aside a bit more time every week to relax and recharge. In the ministry version of this (from what I’ve read- although I am Universal Life Church ordained!), this is referred to as the Sabbath and has to do with prayer or quiet reflection. It doesn’t have to be limited to that. It can be anything you want- as long as it’s not work! I like to spend time with family and friends, get a massage or a pedi. Something I find relaxing and fun. 

Abandon Annually.  This is big one, where you really disconnect and let everything go. Take a vacation, go someplace quiet and just be. Do you do that? Disconnecting has become quite the problem lately, hasn’t it? Even on our vacations, we are still connected- most of the time anyway. 

Every year we take two vacations. One in the Caribbean and one in Maine. In the Caribbean, the wifi is sketchy, at best and in Maine, we don’t have electricity or running water. Given those situations, you would think we would successfully disconnect, but not fully. Even with sketchy wi-fi, you can still manage to check it here and there. Surprisingly, even without electricity, I can still check my phone (as long as I can find a place to charge it!) Don’t abandon hope yet though- even though we are still connected, we can let go to certain extent. 

Recently, we took a 3 week vacation to the Caribbean. Three weeks seemed like a crazy amount of time to be away (well, not the Europeans, who do this kind of thing routinely!).  I thought I wouldn’t be able to handle it- and to be fair, if Baxter were still alive, I wouldn’t have! I could never be away from my dog for that long- and I did have a hard time being away from Barney, but he was well taken care of (dare I say, spoiled!). Anyway, we did it, we were invited by friends to join them for 3 weeks and we successfully pulled it off despite my misgivings about being away so long. 

In reality, 3 weeks was ultimately relaxing. All thoughts of work were completely gone. I was able to just focus on the here and now. Enjoy the sunshine, a good book and the company of good friends. So totally relaxing! It felt decadent, but I think I finally figured out the ‘abandon annually’. I was able to let go and actually fall into a routine- a relaxing routine- that allowed me to completely recharge. 

I know most people don’t get enough vacation time to do this experiment, but the point is to take whatever time you have for that annual vacation and truly let go. Don’t let what you have to do when you get back haunt you and disturb your relaxation. Really be in the moment- it’s so worth it! Even you have one week to relax, take full advantage and let yourself abandon. You will thank yourself!

As Elmer J. Fudd has been known to say, “West and wewaxation at wast!”