Sometimes, things just make us angry. Sometimes, that anger is intense and hot and needs to burn. We wrongly relegate that hot, hot anger to the list of “negative emotions,” as if there is such a thing.
What makes you burn with anger?
Lazy
Don’t let anyone call you lazy. Rest when you need it, and maybe when you want it. Resist the siren call of violent extractive capitalism. You do not need to earn rest–and it is not sloth just because someone else thinks you shouldn’t be resting.
Rest when you want to today.
Softness
“I draw on the power of houseplants, candlelight, laughter, and dreaming to reclaim the rest that will heal me. In defiance of white supremacy, ableism, and patriarchy, I refuse to light the other end of my candle. I will boldly protect my softness, defend my sleep, and liberate all of my unassigned minutes, hours, and days. I am one soft animal among many: a cell in the breathing world’s body. Let us be cared for as such. May it be so.” -from “The Rest That Will Heal Us,” by Atena O. Danner
How do you protect your softness?
Sloth
Some of us go slow. Some of us need more rest than others. Some of us have broken free from the judgment that we are being sinful when we are not producing things to fuel our economy.
Go slow today. It’s OK.
Rest
Over and over again, we get the message that we do not deserve rest. Rest–allowing our bodies to recharge and recover from the demands of life–becomes an act of resisting those messages. We must re-train our brains to accept rest and not label it laziness.
Take the time you need to rest today.