Taking Downtime

When I write about thriving, it sometimes can seem as if there is an urgency to be constantly productive. Constantly growing can be draining at times.  We must balance our growth and motivation with time for recovery, rest, and reflection.

Over the past week and a half, I have been battling a dreadful head cold. I am not good when I am sick, actually a pretty bad patient. Mostly, I refuse to believe what my body is telling me. I try to tough it out and plow through my day with all its responsibilities. This is not a good strategy.

I didn’t ask for this. I didn’t volunteer to be a human petri dish, a walking bacteria factory with the classy phlegm, mucus, and coughing. I am not allowed to get sick!  I have much to do, so many goals and aspirations.  These things will not get done unless I do them.

Of course, it is my wonderful wife who finally convinces me that I must slow down take care of myself. In fact, she insists. Twice in my life, I have refused to be sick.  I flat out refused to slow down and take care of myself, thinking, that if I was going to feel like crud, I could to that lying down or I could feel like crud and be productive as well. Bad idea.  Both times I have done this, I came down with walking pneumonia! Thank goodness for the miracle of anti-biotics or I would not be here today.

So with much reluctance I have rolled into bed and forced myself to be non-productive. I have taken care of my basic responsibilities, even accomplished a few events. But for the most part, I have done not one bit of Thriving in the last week and a half. Instead, I have listened to my wife, and my body and mostly rested.  By giving my body the rest it needs in order to heal, I am hoping to avoid further degradation of my health and a speedy return to vitality.

One of my dreams is to someday run a marathon. 26.2 miles! Over the past few years I have made some half hearted attempts to take on this challenge and begun a program of running.  I have run quite a few 5K races and one 10K race.  But something always comes up that derails my ultimate training goals. Just when I thought I was in a fantastic training groove, this head cold hits.  I crave my morning runs. Lying in bed seems like a luxury but all I keep thinking is that I am wasting valuable training time. And my goals get further away.

When I tell my ego to take a rest, I realize that taking this downtime is not the end of the world, or the end of my training. It is a minor setback. So many people have set wonderful goals for this new year and as soon as they hit a wall, they use it as an excuse to give up.  We will NOT allow these minor setbacks to derail us from our goals. The courage to thrive means that even in the face of resistance, we dig deep and find the courage to continue our quest. Of course, that will have to wait until after my bowl of chicken soup and another nap.

It’s not easy for me to take time off. But sometimes, by taking some downtime, we can recharge and be better prepared for the opportunities that are just down the road. This has been a good time of reflection. Yes, I am a victim of this dreaded cold bug. But I refuse to let it kill me. I will survive. My body’s defenses are well equipped to wipe out this army of invaders, but I have to let them do it in their own time. Then and only then, will I charge forward with vigor in my quest to ever Thrive.