Trina MachacekThere are many layers to exhaustion. In the dictionary exhaustion is defined as extreme fatigue. That could be cured by a good night’s sleep. But real exhaustion, the kind that means; if I have to pick up one more thing off the floor; if I have to suck up one more dust bunny from its’ hidey hole under the bed where it l hardly ever have the need to go because why ask for more work; if I have to scrape stuck on stuff off the clean dishes that come out of my dishwasher after the super cycle one more time; in short if I have to do or re-do much more, to the point that I literally cannot lift a finger to save a puppy from a stray tom cat, now that is exhaustion which cannot be cured with 8 hours of sleep.  No that exhaustion needs more.  It needs re-energization.

So taking into account that just because you are pooped does not mean you can drop your life and go to say Jamaica for ten days, (oh if were only that easy) then what can you do to get your mojo back? I say take a nap. Yes nap.  That all inclusive mini vacation.

Who decided that after Kindergarten we no longer got to stop the world for half an hour in the afternoon yawn and take a short time out and nap?  I know that work gets in the way, but if we all napped at the same time who would be hurt?  Thoughts came to mind like who would answer the phone?  Who would answer the door?  Who would let the dogs out?  Then, ding, I remembered–if we ALL took a nap at the same time there would be no one awake to call me, knock on my door and the dogs would be sleeping too so they wouldn’t need to go out until the nap period was over.  So a movement to nap say between 2:45pm and 3:15 pm could be a justifiable movement.  Unlike burning bras or the like.  Holding to my nonpolitical stance I will move on…

But wait, here come the nay say-ers.  Those who haven’t yet gotten to the place in their lives where a good nap is a coveted event.  Oh they are out there.  I used to be one of them.  I showed an “F” for full in my tank of life.  Never even yawned until after midnight.  Even used to drive 250 miles to pick up parts, drive back and still manage to make a full meal for dinner.  Now?  Not so much.  I can still drive the 250 miles but then I need to get a motel room and have pizza delivered.  I don’t know exactly when that happened, but I do know why it happened.  It was because I didn’t stop and take those naps each day.

The first inkling I got about napping as an adult was after baling hay in the middle of the night.  The next day about 2 in the afternoon I hit a wall.  Uh figuratively not actually.  All of a sudden my feet felt like they each weighted about four tons.  My brain felt like mush and I couldn’t get up off the chair I was sitting in.  Then I drifted off into nap land.  I lasted only about 40 minutes. Then a noise woke me and I groggily came back to life and felt—better. It was a true eye opening moment. Get it? Nap. Eye opening.  Moving forward…

I had seen my husband nap in the afternoons. Him being a tad bit older than yours truly, I thought it was strange but I just zipped around him doing my wifely stuff.  Thought it was a waste of time actually.  Who in their right mind would lay down on the floor during the height of the day and go to sleep?  Who does that?  Weirdos, that’s who. Lazy bones is what I called him.  Well my friends, be careful what you say.  Things sometimes have a tendency to come back and bite you in your-you know what.  I have occasionally joined that lazy bones club myself.  And I like it.  It is not every day that my schedule will accommodate a 15 to 20 minute intermission from life.  But those days that is possible I take full advantage of it.  Try it you’ll like it. So the word for the day is; Siesta.

 

Trina Machacek lives in Eureka, Nevada.  Her book ITY BITS can be found on Kindle.  Share your thoughts and opinions with her at itybytrina@yahoo.com