Finding balance

I heard it once said that to optimize our energy, we should sleep for 8 hours, work for 8 hours, and rest/play for 8 hours....adding up to exactly 24 :)  Perfect by design!!!  But how many of you can actually say you do this?  I know I, for one, can't :(

My average weekday breakdown looks more like this:

Sleep: 7
Work: 13 (my job, chores, errands, duties, etc.)
Rest: 4

Balance is very hard to achieve these days, wouldn't you agree?  Wouldn't it be great to add some more time to that "rest" category, give yourself an extra hour of sleep, and then everything would seem more balanced?  Unfortunately, time doesn't work that way.  I've thought this a lot, wishing I could bend the rules of time.  But then I finally realized that if I want more me time, more time to rest, relax, enjoy my family and friends, pray...I need to make it.  It isn't the lack of time that is the problem.  It's me.

I am sleep crazy (meaning I really need it to function, as those of you who know me know), so since it can't come from there, I guess I must find time to take from the "work" category...

Don't get me wrong.  I am not devaluing hard work.  Working hard is good: it makes you dedicated, teaches you patience, and challenges your mind and makes it grow.  It is very important, and I work hard all time.  There are also people who are burning the candle to get through school, achieve a dream, take care of their children, or make financial ends meet.  We need to set goals for ourselves, and there are realistic deadlines that must be met!  I firmly believe that when we want something special, we need to earn it and work hard for it.  Nothing good comes easy.  You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow (Luke 19:22).  You gotta earn it!

But when work is your life, your every waking, breathing moment, and perfection is the name of the game for and end that you cannot name other than "earning more money," then it just isn't right.  Life is too short.

I feel like we as Americans do a lot of things well, but finding time for ourselves, just ourselves, that last little category, is the first thing we let go.

I should work more, play later.  There is so much to do.  I need to impress.  I need to do this.

This is something I really value about Spain and Europe in general... life is for living.  Outdoor cafes are a testament to this way of thinking.  They are everywhere.  You will NEVER see a Spaniard walking with a cup of coffee.  EVER.  Look for it sometime.  You will never see it.  For them, life is never to busy to sit down, chat, and enjoy a coffee.

Plaza Mayor, Madrid

I have always known (but am finally actualizing) that my family, friends, and prayer life matter more than the money, more than the stuff, more than the time I spend at work.  I am grateful for a good job, and I will continue to work hard, but balance is key.  I should never be too busy to "wake up and smell the coffee."

In fact, resting more will actually make my work time more productive. I feel like the more I rest, the better of a teacher I am.  I am less burned out, I enjoy my students more.  I laugh more.  I'm sharper.  I remember more.  I scaffold, I individualize.  I'm usually on fire, actually.  It's all about finding the balance.  Right?

"Mrs. S, did your grade our projects?"

"No.  I had a great weekend and got to enjoy it!  How was yours?"

"It was good."

"I'll get them to you on Wednesday, okay?"

"Okay."

The world didn't end.  The projects were passed back.  And they got graded, in a timely manner, in the designated "work time."

In Spain, when you finish your coffee at the cafe no one will bring you your check unless you ask for it.  Sometimes people will sit for hours and no one says a word.  It's your designated "play time."