Cherish Downtime

You know about downtime, right? Those pockets of time when there isn't much going on and you may not even be in a position to do anything productive. Some examples are...

• Waiting at the doctor's office
• Using public transportation
• Saturday afternoon in Decorah, IA (my "retreat home")
• Sitting in the car pool line
• Waiting for someone to get ready for an outing

If you are like me (that would be Type A), downtime can be stressful. I remember when I was in college and happened to mistake the starting time of a class. I had to wait for about 20 minutes for the class to start without having any materials to read or study. At first, I started to freak out, because I was "wasting time" doing nothing. Then I decided to pull myself together and just closed my eyes and let my thoughts wander. It was fun and relaxing!

Every Tuesday, I take Rebecka to her theater class at a nearby cultural center. I could drop her off and attempt to run errands during this time. However, I have chosen to take this time to sit in the comfy chairs in the lobby and do some recreational reading or just sit and reflect. It is so relaxing. I think I look forward to theater class more than Rebecka does!

How can you be creative and come up with great ideas if you don't take time to sit and think? How will you know yourself? Next time you find yourself in a downtime situation, take advantage of it.

Chillax! (as Rebecka would say...)