…my blogger friends gave to me: The permission to Recharge
Yes, I know that the 12th day of Christmas as January 6th. But this year I have committed to finishing what I start. Even if it isn’t the finish product I had in mind when I started. I began writing this entry over a week ago. But I realize now that the entry I started could easily be a blog series, so instead of trying to fit all of those words and emotions into a single blog entry I am choosing to start anew.
As women – regardless of our marital status, career choice, and maternal status – we busy ourselves and fill our days with meeting the needs of other people. Real or imagined. (The needs, not the people. Who’s got time to meet the needs of imaginary people?) We get so busy tending to husbands, bosses, co-workers, children, friends – not to mention the tasks on our to do lists – that we tend to put our needs last. And we don’t realize how overwhelmed we are until our patience is running low and we’re struggling to find kind words or a gentle tone.
So, in 2015 I propose that we start setting aside time to recharge, to refuel. Nothing crazy, maybe once a quarter. Find a one day women’s conference in town. Or a weekend retreat a few hours away. I totally recommend the latter. There’s something heavenly about waking up to quiet, knowing that all your meals will be made by someone else and you don’t have to clean up the dishes. Did you just breathe a sigh of relief when you read that? I did. And then when you return home you are pleasantly surprised at just how ecstatic you are to be welcomed by a messy and loud house.
A search of “one day women’s conferences” on Google returned 254,000,000 results in 0.29 seconds. “Women’s weekend retreat” only had 31,000,000 results in 0.26 seconds, but that’s still plenty of options. Don’t want anything as formal as a conference or a retreat? Then make a standing date with some friends for a mom’s night out or join a small group. Just make sure that whatever is meant to refuel you doesn’t add to the stress that you’re seeking to alleviate.
Do you have a refueling plan for 2015? If so, what is it? If not, is there anything you did to refuel in 2014 that you’d like to do again in 2015?
Catalyst Movement 
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