social media

Every so often I take a day or two to engage in extreme rest. I have created a structured life for myself, so it is never convenient, never easy to drop everything in favor of rest. But I’ve found that stillness staves off burnout. Letting my thoughts fall away energizes me. And successive naps in the span of a few days reengage my creativity, helping me to maintain levity and optimism.

So what does extreme rest involve? It is boring! My quiet interludes are lazy. I can hardly read a page without dozing off. I find it difficult to get lost in a series on Netflix. I putter, I take walks, I do a little yoga. I may try a new recipe, but I am more likely to live on avocado toast and eggs. I always sip tea. I always put the phone away. I never push myself. I am unambitious.

Life has its glamorous moments—trips abroad, professional achievements, family milestones—and those events should be celebrated. I propose that we also honor downtime. Occasional spans of extreme rest are necessary parts of my self-care. Taking care of oneself goes beyond massages, manicures, and a night out with the girls. For me, self-care is a harmonious blend of the sense of purpose I find in work and family, carefree escapes from my responsibilities, and the diligent, daily work that involves rest, nourishment, and exercise. Extreme rest is incompatible with Instagram and against the ethos of Twitter. Yet, for me, it is a delicious, indulgent, and necessary element of life.

Inspirations

Luxurious Boredom

Light and Sky

Hygge for One

The soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts.
–Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book 5, v. 16

Thanks to my Instagram habit, much of my mental space is occupied by squares. Within the limits of a square, I sense the freedom to share without words. I envision a clear, thoughtful grid connecting experiences and exuding harmony. Imagine my delight when I recently stepped into a contemporary stained glass exhibit that was dominated by square panels!

My first thought was that much like me, the artists were under the spell of Instagram. But then I thought of the stained glass windows in Chartres Cathedral, a few steps from the museum. Some of the windows are 900 years old, and most are arranged in circles, squares, and rectangles. Each window is its own medieval grid, to be read from bottom to top. So, placing a story in the bounds of a square is nothing new, but the immediacy and reach of Instagram is.

The contemporary pieces at the International Stained Glass Centre do not invite a bottom to top reading, but rather offer a sampling of work from artists all over the world, exploring the theme “the search for the light of the world.” I treat the works as impressions rather than narratives. My eye goes straight to the tight, bursting center of Shinique Smith’s untitled 2016 panel. Her energetic swirls are reminiscent of dragon flies that skip across lakes in the summer and remind me of the fairy parties I organize for my nieces and nephew. Much like the medieval panels in the cathedral across the way, color and light cultivate wonder. Her work brings forth an inner light that radiates, undulates, and eventually flows from the frame. Here, the multicolored lumière du monde grows from a dense, interior space of possibility–patterns, shapes and colors in evolution, expressing the harmonious contrasts of the soul.