Hubby and I are camping with three other couples in one of the most beautiful spots on God’s green earth…Door County, Wisconsin. The trees are just starting to turn, with bright pops of red and orange amid the rich dark green. On Tuesday we had lunch at a favorite tourist spot, Al Johnson’s Swedish restaurant. Besides being famous for scrumptious Swedish meatballs, pancakes, and lingonberries, the restaurant is known as the place with the goats on the roof. Yep, goats. A couple of them laze and graze on the grass roof as customers walk in and out below and use them as celebrity backdrops for selfies. As I gazed up at one of them, I thought, “Must be nice to be up there, above all the commotion.”
Ever have days like that, where you’d just like to put a little distance between you and the rest of the world? I love spending time with friends and family, but I’m a serious introvert and after hours of social time, I have to have some alone time. I got some on Wednesday in the most delicious way. We came back to camp after a fun lunch and indulging in ice cream and I cocooned myself in a soft blanket in a reclining camp chair. Cup of tea and a good book, and I was ready for some serious alone time. I napped and read and prayed and simply soaked up the sounds of nature and the luxury of nothing and no one demanding my time. Delicious!
I used to feel guilty about carving out time to be alone and relax. When the kids were young, it somehow seemed selfish to take time for myself. But it isn’t. In fact, it’s a necessity.
Alone time is Biblical. You know that, right? Jesus modeled it, so who are we to argue?
“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” (Mark 1:35)
“But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” (Luke 5:16)
“Because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, [Jesus] said to [his disciples], ‘Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.’ So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place.” (Mark 6:31-32)
So I am hereby giving you permission get away to a quiet place, if only for a few minutes at a time. Take a nap, a walk, a bubble bath, read, journal, pray out loud, listen to worship music, sing…restore. We all need to reboot, reset, replenish our physical, spiritual, and mental energy.
How and where can you find alone time today? In the woods? Your bedroom? On a grass-covered rooftop?