A day off

Every time my Nanny - my beloved late paternal grandmother - left her house she’d make sure everything was off. She’d stop by her stove and say out loud every single time, “Off. Off. Off. Off. Off.” Thus ensuring that all four burners were off and that the oven was too.

I thought about this sweet memory of my Nanny this morning as I embarked on my planned rest day. I got my second COVID vaccine yesterday and I intentionally planned it on a day when I had nothing on the calendar the next day. Also my husband just got back from a 9 day 8 night business trip during which time I solo parented our 8 and 4 year old. I was more than ready to be off.

“Off. Off. Off. Off. Off.” I said to myself as I settled back into my bed after emerging only long enough for breakfast that my husband made for me.

It’s so easy to be “On. On. On. On. On.” and fall into the addictive cycle of doing. No matter how much needs to be done there’s always a chance to stop and turn off, even for a bit.

My intention is to plan more intentional off time. While this time was connected to COVID vaccine recovery time and post-solo-parenting marathon, I’m promising myself some even more intentional off time. I’m always happier, healthier and more at peace when downtime is built into my schedule. I’m so much cooler when I get to turn off the heat.

How do you turn off, off, off, off, off?