To describe this past month very simply: by the time the classes ended, so did my energy. I had completely run out. There was nothing left in my metaphorical batteries. Which brought about, of course, an extra challenge in that there was still plenty of work to be done. Three exams to write, Brescia Ambassador training to attend, a floor Christmas party to plan, RA shifts to work, not to mention laundry to do, clothes to pack and presents to buy and wrap.
Oh, and, I’ve forgotten something… blog posts to write! Whoops!
In the ten days that I’ve been back at home with my family, I’ve realized something very important: I needed a break!
It’s something very obvious and easy to say now, but if you’d suggested it to me a few weeks ago, I’d have said you were out of your mind. “There’s so much to do!” I would have said. “I barely have time for all this as it is, and you want me to stop working?”
But that is exactly what I needed to do. I needed to take those fifteen minutes between study blocks to really absorb what I’d learned before moving on to a new chapter. I needed to take some time after waking up and before going to bed to just sit quietly and think about the day.
I suppose it is rather easy to reflect on the evils of busyness today, on my tenth straight day off, when I’ve done next to nothing that could be considered genuinely productive. The one thing that I could consider productive would be recharging my batteries. But you know what? That might be the most productive thing I could be doing with my time after all!