How to Rest

by Emma Johnson

I have been reading this brilliant book for work - for a feature on the importance of having rest time, as much as work, sleep and social time.

But, I think this book might have just come along at the perfect time for me personally too. It feels so much harder to honour my need for rest this lockdown, but this book has really reminded me that part of the problem is our relationship with rest.

In this age of faster, better, more and most we value productivity over anything else. It is work, not leisure that gives us social standing and we have embraced this cult of busyness to the detriment of our own wellbeing. We are prouder of what we have done in a day, rather than what we have not done.

And yet, as Claudia Hammond writes: “We yearn for rest, but then feel anxious that perhaps we are being lazy. Perhaps we are not making the most of our lives.” Learning to rest, to honour that time and to know how to do it well is a vital skill these days. But not one that many of us practice it.

In the book, Hammond writes about the importance of time alone, having baths, going for walks, and even watching TV and daydreaming. She deeply interrogates each form of rest; and in doing so, uncovers the specific nuances that make time restful. She shows us how we can think in many different ways, and how we need to reframe the reputation of restful activities - such a pottering and television - to begin to see their value.

I’ve not only learnt a lot, but I feel more able to carve out pockets of rest time now, knowing what is restful and why. It’s a vital read for anyone whose relationship with being busy needs to be readdressed.

The Art of Rest, Claudia Hammond (2019) Buy it here >>