I’m snuggled under my favorite cozy blanket on the chaise in my sunroom. It’s a cloudy day but I’m enjoying the natural light that pours in from three walls of windows. I’m alternating writing this post with finishing a cloth art doll I started a week ago. I’ve been wanting to make cloth dolls (not the kind for play but the kind for display) for years, and last year I finally started. I work on them on and off when I have time. Today, I’ll devote several hours to this new one, which, just like the others, I’m sewing entirely by hand. I’ll also finish reading a book and will start another. I’ll eat lunch, hang out with our two dogs and watch the builders methodically continue construction on the house next to ours (which is far enough away that I’m not bothered by the occasional loud noise).
It’s May 1, a random Wednesday. And I’m not at work. I was talking with a colleague recently about taking random days off during the week, and decided to follow through. Normally, we take days off from work for holidays, vacations, or more mundane reasons like meeting a home repair person. So, taking a day off from work for reasons not listed above is a little exhilarating. In reality, there reason is I’m recharging. I’m dubbing this new exercise a Random Day Away.
Oddly, I have thought about work a few times already today, but it’s been on a more macro level. Because there’s not the expectation that I produce anything today, I am giving myself license to let my mind wander, and because work takes up a large portion of my life, naturally some work ideas cross my path. I’m fortunate to work for an organization that not only values work life balance but actively promotes it. And I’m lucky to have a boss who supports a creative and collaborative environment. So, I’m not someone who dreads going back to work after being away for any amount of time.
By simply giving myself permission to not think about work for a day, I am allowing the refueling necessary for the active engagement required in the office. So, I’m kind of excited to get back to work tomorrow and back to my team. But first, I’ve got some more recharging to do. Long live the Random Day Away.
Christina Deidesheimer 