I’m working on embracing impermanence. I’ve been reading When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chodron, and she reminds us that impermanence is our natural state. Babies don’t stay babies, people live and die, jobs come and go. But it’s not just reflected in the big things, it’s also the little things that happen every day. Our favorite pen dries up, our favorite dish breaks, our favorite shirt gets stained and can’t be worn again.
This pandemic is forcing us all to acknowledge impermanence, whether we want to or not. For example, I’m technically “unemployed” right now, given that most of my revenue streams have taken serious hits lately. Yet, I still seem to be plenty busy with “work,” it’s just not the type of work that pays much or that I really want to be doing.
My husband is urging me to adopt the viewpoint of being on sabbatical. Of course, ideally a sabbatical means you’re still getting a paycheck from your college or business, although not always. A sabbatical is a break from your regular workload, but it’s often tied to something that will enhance or improve your career, like doing research or writing a book (done those).
I could view this as a “career break.” Apparently, that concept is catching on in various places around the world, although it’s usually tied to something that helps your personal situation like raising kids (did that) or traveling…
