Taking Time for Yourself

I am hanging out in Gothenburg, Sweden, visiting my friend Sandra from college - finally beginning to feel, one month into my "hiatus" and a little over a week into my trip, that I can relax more fully. Sandra and I watched the Swedish airing of Jay Leno the other night with Justin Timberlake as a guest. Justin and Jay talked about Justin's decision to take a 2-year sabbatical from work. Many wondered what was wrong or why he would do such a thing at the prime of his life and in the midst of a successful career. He simply explained that his grandfather had told him he should enjoy life while he was still young and able to do so. So he spent two years playing golf and learning how to enjoy life.

While I am not proposing that I am anything like Justin Timberlake nor that he should be some sort of role model, I believe there is much to be learned from what he did. We (Americans especially) often are so focused in doing what we think we should be doing that we forget to enjoy ourselves along the way. I know I have operated under that mentality for too long. It is almost impossible to "enjoy the journey" when you feel you are in a constant state of trying to be everything to everyone. We are taught that power and money and status are what will bring us contentment and happiness, yet we never reach fulfillment because those things probably take away from it more than lend to it. Is it any wonder that some of the wealthiest countries and people are also the most discontent? The truth is we need to learn to embrace the present, to relax and to enjoy what happens along the way to wherever we are heading.

That is exactly one of my goals of this odyssey: to learn to relax and enjoy life. Of course, not working for four months in itself should go far in teaching me how to relax, but I believe being in Europe also fulfills a vital piece of the prescription. Ever since my first trip to Europe, I have been in awe of Europeans' ability to take it easy and embrace life in the moment. Granted, they have the same stresses as anyone else, but they seem to place more importance on taking a break from work to sit at a street cafe and sip a coffee or closing their shops to take a nap or spend time with family and friends. These, my friends, are the things worth living for... not owning the latest model of cell phone or being the best at everything. Since I seem to forever live in a state of stress - trying to do and be too much - I know this trip will be a healthy reminder for me of what is truly important.

So, for any of you who were concerned about my seemingly rash decision to take a sabbatical in the midst of some of my most promising working years, I assure you that this is the healthiest thing I could be doing with my time. While I am young and able, I am enjoying life to the fullest, and I hope I can encourage others to learn to do the same!