Give Yourself a Break

I took a mini blog-cation around the end of March in a last ditch effort to finish up some writing. I didn't actually get that much writing done, but the break was nice. It was a good reminder of something I lose track of all the time:

Breaks are good for you!

In our busy, busy world with our busy, busy lives, it's easy to forget to give yourself a moment. We're constantly running on deadlines, goals, and expectations. Have to get to work on time, must finish that paper, remember to pick the kids up. There's almost always something we feel we have to be doing or should be doing, and let's face it, there's just NOT ENOUGH TIME in the day.

And that's why breaks are important. If you're running all the time, you're going to run yourself into the ground. You'll lose sight of the point, of what's important. You'll probably even forget to enjoy doing the things you like to do.

Breaks let you rest and reflect. How else are you going to get perspective if you don't step away for a bit?

These recent breaks I took reminded me why breaks are awesome.

•  Rock Band break: I bought Rock Band 2 a few months ago, but house-remodeling and cleaning made it impossible to play at home. Also, we didn't much feel like it. A few weeks ago, we played and it was super, super fun. The long break, plus the new game (which allowed band customizations), renewed our love for the game. Oh and our band, Mit Hutten, is awesomesauce (at least on the medium level).

• Writing break: After my failed attempt to make my April resolution writing deadline, I took a break from it. Plus, there were Real Life distractions as well. As with many long breaks, it was hard to get back on board with writing. However, when I finally started working on my WIP again, it felt great and I started to feel really excited about it again.

• Reading break: I've been reading a lot of YA fantasy/paranormal romance, and I've enjoyed it. Still, after a while, you lose the sense of excitement and newness since you come to expect that certain things will happen. Gayle Forman's If I Stay was a breather. Yeah, it's got a bit of the paranormal (in premise), and okay, there's some romance too, but it was more of a contemporary, literary YA read. It was a different kind of story, not to mention beautifully written. I loved it, and it also made me eager to get back to the other books - mostly YA fantasy and/or paranormal - I had lined up. Included among these books was the rest of the Gemma Doyle trilogy. I had been eager to read them, but with all the fantasy-ish stuff I'd been reading, plus the huge book sizes, I felt a little burned out and daunted. After my break, I was ready to go, and I have since finished the trilogy.

So next time you feel totally stressed out or pooped out, stop. Breathe and cut yourself some slack! One of the best things I learned in my Meditation class is that sometimes, you have to just banish everything else and BE in the moment. Trust me, you'll feel refreshed afterward.

Have you taken any breaks lately? What did you do or NOT do? How did you feel about it?