Your priorities rise when the power goes out.
This morning…on a gorgeous, bright, sunny day, the power went out unexpectedly in my house. And other than losing some of my work (take a deep breath, Lisa) there was no harm, no reason I needed to be connected to the grid in that moment.
And yet, I was at a loss as to what work I could accomplish, now that I was forcibly disconnected from my computer.
I scanned my to-do lists — pages of them left over from many days of work partially done but still needing attention.
On some of them, I wistfully scrawled things like…
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Take a deep, long, slow breath. Now do it again.
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Take a walk, stretch, listen to the birds.
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Get inspired — seek out something beautiful to ponder.
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Take the time to do thorough research on a new topic.
These are the poorly neglected elements of what I deeply need to do great work in the world, silently holding their place on a list and never getting checked off.
These things feed my soul and my passion for my work. I love getting absorbed, and synthesizing new ways to understand a topic holistically, and weaving it together to see all its angles and how they work in sync.
I love taking long walks, listening to the sounds of the world, gazing at the colors of nature, letting my heart well up inspiration and visions for where I’d like my work to go next.
I need to be inspired, to seek out what is beautiful and resonates with my soul. It’s essential to my ability to create, generate, and give.
And yet, too often, these are left unattended to.
It is similar to how keeping a true sabbath is so easy to put off, to justify it’s irrelevance in today’s life, to downplay its role in our spiritual health. Prioritizing what feeds your creativity, your sense of awe and wonder, your connection to the Source of all inspiration, is a wise priority.
What would you be free to do if the energy went out during your work hours today– your mothering work hours, your career work hours, or both?
What neglected needs would rise to be attended to?
What a thought provoking post! When I think about it, my day would really change if the power went out. My one on one time with the kids would increase. My to-do list would decrease. My stress level would peak for a moment and then fade away as the pressure to get things done decrease. Makes me want to act like the lights are out now!
Hi Marci– Oh I identify with that surge of stress…but thankfully I also identify with that release into relief…that something other than myself made the decision for that moment that it was OK, perhaps priority, to get off the computer and experience life for a bit 🙂
When the power goes out, it changes everything! The challenge for me is to seize the opportunity for something different, rather than feeling frustrated at all that can’t be done. Beautiful, thought provoking post!
Yes, Erin– It’s that small shift in perspective that makes all the difference!
So glad to hear others love to keep the sabbath day a special day. Thanks!
Some of my best inspiration happens during those “forced” down-times as well. And sure enough, the world doesn’t come to a halt when we take those (much needed) breaks! I was trying to figure out how to best spend my last 45 minutes before picking up the kids – your post just helped me decide! (And LOVE your beautiful blog design!)