a couple of days away
son, whatever it is you like to do, fishing,
golf, tennis, whatever, make sure you find a way to do that at least one hour a
week because it will help your attitude when you have to do things that you
really don't want to do or that just simply have to be done."
We returned yesterday from a couple
days away. Over the past few years I have come to understand the European
"holiday" and have come to appreciate that Europeans get or expect to take
"holiday" which I think is four weeks away from their work. Sure, I know that
those on the lower end of the economic caste system don't get that time and this
is wrong. But the whole idea of holiday is foreign in the United States. We
use the term holiday, in general, to indicate special shopping days and
discounts you only see on that specific day or weekend or during that season.
We encourage citizens to remember a person or historical event while getting
those new shoes, a deal on a car, or early Christmas presents.
Holiday?
Sabbath or sabbatical is now in
vogue in our culture for corporate and clergy types. Some regions are taking
"sabbatical" time to digest their current structure. I think this is an
important idea for clergy and congregations to consider and find ways to
practice for their clergy, but also for the congregation's life too. But
typically clergy and congregations think of sabbatical as time "away" to learn
something that will help the congregation or clergy person when sabbatical time
ends or "runs out". In the academic world, sabbatical time is given to
professors to go off and take time to research and write books or articles that
they apparently can't work into their regular work schedule. Maybe sabbatical
time and holiday mean something like going on old fashioned "R & R" to
borrow a military phrase. Rest and Relaxation are things we don't do well in
our culture. Is it any wonder that we created terms like "burn out" to describe
the exhaustion of spirit and body. When was the last time you "made or took"
time to enjoy your favorite book or music or film or exercise or hobby? When
did you enrich your life whether it has anything to do with your job, vocation,
or continuing education?
These are a few
of the things I pondered while on rides called, Top Thrill Dragster, Millennium
Force, and Mean Streak at roller coaster mecca, Cedar Point. This is the third
year we have traveled for a holiday that includes lots of talking while waiting
in line and lots of listening to and watching people while waiting in line. It
was a holiday, though not nearly long enough, to get in touch with that thrill
seeking child that still exists in me but also breath and walk and laugh and let
go the stress that keeps me from being the person God needs me to be. Yes, that
sounded a bit dramatic and is something of an overstatement. I now understand
what my dad meant when he told me, ". . . son, whatever it is you like to do,
fishing, golf, tennis, whatever, make sure you find a way to do that at least
one hour a week because it will help your attitude when you have to do things
that you really don't want to do or that just simply have to be
done."
Find your holiday, hobby, or
sabbatical time.
Filed Fri - August 26, 2005, 07:30 AM in
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