Two Days of Nothing: Why Taking a Break Is More Than Just Rest

After almost four years of non-stop work, I’ve finally hit pause.

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Not the “I’m on vacation but I’m still worried about deadlines” kind of pause. Not the “quick getaway for the weekend before Monday chaos starts” kind either.

This is a pause of a different kind. This time, I quit. I walked away not forever, but for now. And for the first time in as long as I can remember, I’m not carrying work in my head like invisible luggage.

“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.”- Anne Lamott

So, it has been two days that I have been, technically, unemployed. And while part of me wants to be checking emails constantly, or staying as engaged and productive, or even “planning” this break like I would plan another project, I’m working not to. I’m working to just be.

It is really strange and oddly liberating.

I have 15 days until I start a new job, new role, new responsibilities, new rhythm. But these 15 days between? They are mine. All mine. And I am slowly starting to realize how necessary it is to create this space.

To slow down. To breathe.