So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation. (Genesis 2:3).
The old saying goes: “Man may work from sun to sun but woman’s work is never done.” Too often, I find this saying to be true. While the man may go to work (8 to 12 hours), he comes home to the expectation that the house will be clean and his dinner will be prepared. And all he has to do for the rest of the night is relax in front of the TV.
However; when women joined the workforce, their roles as housewife and mother were not assigned to someone else. In addition to working 8 to 12 hours a day away from the home, their day does not end there. Women are charged with making the house a home, nurturing and rearing the children and providing love and support to their husbands.
In the busyness of life and in taking care of others, where do we find time for ourselves? If we don’t put ourselves first every now and then, we will soon experience burnout and we won’t be useful to anyone.
As Genesis 2:3 states, on the seventh day God rested. If God thought it important to rest then why do we feel it necessary to be actively involved in something 24/7?
Monday evenings is usually my “me time”. After coming home from work, I have the house to myself. I get a chance to watch TV (uninterrupted), talk on the phone or just sit back and do nothing. While three hours alone doesn’t seem like much, you’d be surprised in the difference it makes.
How do you find time to relax?
Deborah Calvert is associate executive director.
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Photo by Carol VanHook. Used with permission.