I’ve been working some type of job since I was 15 years old. My mother, who was a school teacher and single parent, helped me to alter my birth certificate so that I could get my first job at a local fast foodie. At that point and time a job was a necessity. My mother worked herself ragged to make a living, and a few extra sheckles in the pot from my early contributions to the family made things a whole lot easier. Since that time, I’ve consistently worked without letup.

What I’ve been realizing over the past several months is that all that work over the years has slowly worn me down. I’ve really never taken a true break from the grind-no time to reset-no time to refocus. So, when Jill suggested that maybe I take a month off to relax and reset myself a bit, it was like a bit of a revelation.

“I can do that?”

“Sure, why not?”

“I don’t know, why not?”

After a bit more thinking and contemplating I’ve decided to move forward with it. So, in the interest of mental health, I’m taking my first official break from work during the month of December. It’s really more of a mini-sabbatical as I will be taking a full 31 days to press and hold that reset button. That’s 31 days of a self-imposed hibernation status. 31 days to rest, think and plan. And when I emerge I will have my focus and direction back-ready to move on to the next stage.

I’m not even going to begin trying to address the obscene amount of time that has lapsed between my writings. Suffice it to say that between projects, life and other daily minutiae that my time is seriously marginalized. And if I’m being at all honest, the real impetus for my absence probably lies more in the fact the I came to a point where I just needing time to internalize.  I needed a period of time to concentrate on my personal thoughts and writings without trying to do my emotional two step between what I feel is fit for public consumption, and what I want to lock in a small box and hide under my pillow. As with most things, I get to a point where space is needed, and I take it.

It’s only recently that I’ve begun to feel the tug of public writing again. I think now that I’ve stepped into the role of educator, I’m beginning to feel the need to externalize-to give back. What does that mean? Well, I’m not really sure at this point. It will probably be in the form of a selection of writings and thoughts that I want to develop and shape into something meaningful and then release into the wild. Lord knows I have enough in my personal journals to pull from.

I think I’m really just feeling the need to step out into the light a bit more (something I’ve shied away from for quite awhile) and to let my words resonate a bit. I’ve had the fortune of working amongst giants over the last few years-always content to remain quietly in the background and acting as the proverbial sponge while soaking up methods, processes and any other tidbits I could lay my hands on. But there has to come a time, I think, when you step out of the shadows and hoist yourself up onto your own two feet. A time to apply all that you have learned and truly make it into something of your own. And I think I’m finally ready for that… ready to add my voice to the collective.