Earth Day - a reflection from the inside out

Rest is Part of Growth

Life fills up fast. I think most of us know and experience this at some point.

There are appointments, school runs, deadlines, grocery lists, and somewhere in between all of that - actual work. We wear so many hats in a single day: Taxi driver, nurse, organiser, cook, listener, scheduler. And often somewhere at the bottom of that list: ourselves.

I know this from my own life. Not as a theory, but as a reality. And I wouldn't want to miss a single thing out of this.

And still, I look outside, take time. At the Rhine meadow near where I live in Cologne / Köln, where I took this photo. And I notice something.

Nature is not rushing.

The wildflowers aren’t rushing. The grass isn’t worried about next week. Things are growing. Slowly and quietly. In their own time.

I think that sometimes it helps to remember. Remember that we are part of nature, too.

Slowing down doesn't mean we stop. It doesn't mean I procrastinate or fall behind. It means allowing yourself to look for a moment. To notice what is already there. To let some things take the time they actually need. Because that is not failure. that is not falling behind. That is how things grow. How we grow.

Not every goal needs to be reached by Friday, or end of day. Not every answer comes when we push harder. Sometimes the clearest thinking happens when we finally stop long enough to breathe.

This is not just a nice idea. As a coach, I see it again and again. The women I work with, the mothers, professionals, people carrying a lot, often already know what they need. They just haven’t had a quiet enough moment to hear it.

So if you have a few minutes today: step outside if you can. Or just look out the window. Notice what nature is doing. It has been doing this for a ver long time without a to-do list.

Rest is not the opposite of growth. Rest is part of it.