The end of summer is almost here, which means, so is my sabbatical. When I started thinking of taking a spiritual sabbatical earlier this summer, I couldn’t wrap my head around being away six or so weeks. However, I felt this strong urge to be still, be silent, sleep and just be. My body was exhausted. I started talking with my husband, my colleague, my friends, and found that I was fully supported in taking this much needed time. Then I read author Kristi Ling’s post on Facebook: “One of the best ways to keep abundant energy, joy, and wellness flowing is to rest when your soul calls for it. Truly rest. When we ignore this call from our soul, that's when we can invite in a boatload of messed up things that can screw up our world (illness, stress, major mood swings). A tired soul needs reflection, nurturing, laughter, and empty space. A tired soul needs TLC, freedom, a slower pace, mega down time, and the opportunity to do nothing for a while.” I do not know who this person is, but her words left an impact on me. I realized that it wasn’t just my body that was exhausted, it was body, mind and soul. And so it was agreed, I was taking sabbatical.
Doors began to open for me. My colleague said she’d keep the office running. My friend invited me to their mountain home in the Great Smokey Mountains to stay as long as I needed. My husband was on board. It was all coming together. Then, as if I needed further validation, I met a perfect stranger that said the perfect words at the perfect time. In a nutshell, she said that I was a servant of God and that he was getting ready to do great things with me. She said that I was tired and needed to rest. I told her I was going on sabbatical soon and thanked her for her words. I didn’t know what to expect during my time on sabbatical. It knew it would be very different than anything I had ever experienced. I wasn’t sure what to do without working (I’ve been working since I was 11 or 12 years old), without my kids or husband to tend to, without responsibility to anyone or anything but me! I knew I didn’t want to plan much, and when I set out, I only knew three things for sure: when I was leaving, where I was going and that I was going to build my drum. So, with my car packed and loaded, I headed out on July 16th. I drove for two days and finally made Bryson City, North Carolina, and was greeted with a beautiful rainbow. Then, a few nights before I was to leave, it was as if the sky opened up and I was shown the great Milky Way. I was told that it almost never is seen in the mountains during the summer months. It was a dark night with a clear sky. I felt like it was my message from the Universe that it was time to leave the mountains, to head back to my family. A few days later, that’s exactly what I did. I stayed in the mountains for a total of 16 days. Such a wonderful, profound experience, of which I’ll be sharing in future posts. And so, soon it is time to come out of sabbatical and return to life. I now know the importance of taking time to care for myself. Truly care for myself – body, mind and spirit. I now know that it’s okay to say “no” or “not right now”. I now know that when I listen to my body and use it as my barometer, my life can run so much smoother.
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AuthorsBetty Segerdahl is a Diplomat of Pastoral Science, Certified Holistic Health Practitioner, Reiki Master Teacher and Spiritual Coach. She specializes in Energy Medicine, and also has a background in Psychology, Human Growth & Development and Holistic Health. Archives
September 2016
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