Get Out of Your Rut

 

Have you ever heard the phrase "You can't pour from an empty cup"? It's a favorite of mine.  It's also one that I frequently need to remind myself of.  For me, it's really easy to put everyone and everything else first - classes, emailed questions, family, and all of the other demands on my time. Of course, that inevitably leads me to be burned out, stressed, and tired; and, that makes me useless for everything and everyone that I'm trying to take care of.

To combat this, my husband and I started setting up something fun to do each month.  It would give us one day/weekend to set aside time for ourselves.  During this time, we'd do whatever we wanted to do.  In February, we drove down to Virginia Beach and enjoyed the view in the off season when it's much quieter.  In March, we visited Washington DC so that he could see the James Bond exhibit at the Spy Museum and I could see the Japanese cherry blossoms in full bloom around the National Mall.  Sometimes, leaving town doesn't quite work for our schedules, though.  When this happens, we'll do something closer to home.  In July, we enjoyed the RVA Rosé Crawl where you just walk to a couple of restaurants and try whatever rosé wine they're offering on special for the event. 

My point is that it's important to do something different and step out of our daily routines.  When we get caught in an endless cycle of work-school-home-repeat we tend to forget just how beautiful and big the world around us is.  And, it doesn't have to be expensive or something requiring a lot of time and travel.  Just going to a local park you've never visited or trying a restaurant with a cuisine you've never had before can be enough to break out of your rut and "fill up your <empty> cup".