I’ve had a pair of reading glasses for about three years now. I wear them infrequently, only when I remember–and that’s usually when I’m in front of my computer because my eyes remind me. I had never worn glasses before my son was born, and then all of the sudden I realized that the world seemed to have fuzzy edges. I wasn’t seeing things as clearly as I had before. When I had my eye exam a few months after Sam was born, the doctor gave me a prescription. My vision had always been 20/20, so I asked him what it was now. He said, “20/20.”

Huh? “Why then,” I asked, “do I need glasses?”

“Sometimes your eyes get tired,” he said. “Glasses will help your eyes focus when they’re too tired to focus on their own.”

I think it’s taken me all three years to really wrap my mind around that explanation. As I sit with my laptop open at 11 p.m. (wearing my glasses), trying to figure out how to do the 4-5 hours of work that I still need to do before my 9 a.m. meeting tomorrow, I’m beginning to get it. There are other habits that seem to follow the pattern of my use-them-to-make-your-eyes-work-when-they’re-tired glasses. What do we do when we haven’t gotten enough sleep and need to get going in the morning? Drink a cup of coffee (or insert your caffeinated beverage of choice here). How about when our muscles are tired and sore from over-exertion? Eat a banana (if you’re more healthy like my husband) or take some ibuprofen (if you’re more like me). I’m beginning to see a theme.

Perhaps I should take a cue and learn to just stop, slow down, and rest. I guess that’s what the whole point of Sabbath/sabbatical is all about, isn’t it?

I think I’ll close this laptop and get a good night’s sleep.

U2 in Charlottesville, VA

The past few weeks at work have been incredibly stressful, so I decided that it was time for a total mental break. Last night I took a road trip to Charlottesville with my friend, Danielle, to see U2 live at the University of Virginia. Yeah–it’s pretty silly to go, especially since they’re coming to Raleigh and I’ll be seeing there here, too. But it was a fantastic escape and an incredible show. They played:

Breathe
Get on Your Boots
Mysterious Ways
Beautiful Day
No Line on the Horizon
Magnificent
Elevation
Your Blue Room
New Year’s Day
I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For
Stuck In A Moment
Unforgettable Fire
City of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
I’ll Go Crazy – Remix
Sunday Bloody Sunday
MLK
Walk On
One
Where The Streets Have No Name
Ultraviolet
With or Without You
Moment of Surrender

It was a fantastic show and just the break I needed. What do you do to de-stress when work responsibilities get overwhelming? What have you found to be therapeutic and energizing?