Showing posts with label time. Show all posts
Showing posts with label time. Show all posts

04 May 2010

Pockets of Solitude


Time is a funny concept.

At times, it is our closest ally.  On other occasions...our worst enemy.  Our nemesis.

What does time mean to you?

Time is a paradox to me.  I crave time alone, time to revel in the silence I so desperately seek each day.  When I do (finally) grasp a pocket of solitude, though, my mind is instantly bombarded with thoughts of my children, my husband, and my infinite to-do list.

I instantly feel guilty about my time alone.

How can I be doing something for myself when I have four little children needing me, clamoring for their next need to be met...now? And what about that laundry pile...those bills...the grocery trip that needs to be made? And a thousand other tasks I must accomplish???

But as I settle into my little pocket of solitude, I begin to immerse myself in...well...myself.  I begin to recapture my own sense of identity as I partake in "me" time, whether it's yoga, meditation, reading, or praying.

Losing myself in my leisure time no longer feels bad; in fact, it feels good...well-deserved and even necessary.  Even though I must remind myself time and time again, I have to care for myself, too.  I must nurture myself as I nurture my children.

Much akin to following the airline steward's advice of putting on my oxygen mask before I place it on my children, I cannot help them to breathe if I cannot breathe myself.

**This post is part of the 30 Minute Blog Challenge at Steady Mom!!! Join us!!!**