Rest.

Wow. Life flies when you're in grad school and working. Actually, I'm pretty sure it flies no matter what, but that's just what's making it fly for me these days.

I feel like this is the first time since August that I actually have time to write, let alone want to begin typing. Between sitting at a computer pretty much all day for my job (yes, I have a job now! I work 30hrs/week in the Registrar's office at my university and it's perfect for during grad school) and spending seemingly every waking minute out of class and work either reading grad school scholarly articles or writing papers, I just have no drive to write (or sadly, read) even for pleasure when I get a rare free moment!

That being said, I'm here. It's my Christmas break, and I'm lucky enough to have 2 weeks off of school and 10 days of being off of work, so I'm spending it at my parent's house.

As I am constantly being challenged in my program and just balancing work, school, and sanity, the word REST has been prominent in my mind recently. It's so essential to take a few moments (or hours, if you can spare them) and just rest. Whether that means literally taking a nap, watching mindless TV, or lounging with a good book, I have to find my time to rest.

A few weeks ago, I rested when I had a mound of papers and projects to finish. You see, it snowed quite heavily in Redding, and I was like a child in the snow. In the morning after it snowed all night, I took a walk through it down through some trails I normally run. It was absolutely breathtaking. The peace and serenity of the perfect, untouched snow was beautiful. At one point, I couldn't see anyone else. It was just me, the snow, and God. And it was wonderful. It was my way of resting.

I usually hate New Years resolutions because I tend to break them and feel guilty. But that is definitely one of my goals for this year. To take time to rest.

Currently, I'm sitting on the floor in front of a hot fire in the fireplace at my parents' while sipping hot tea.

Maybe it won't be as difficult as I had anticipated. ;)