In the heat of my first year of teaching I remember excitement and passion and long hours of work all caught up to me one day within the classroom. It was a Friday I believe and at around 1:00 I was shivering, my face was on fire and I could hardly swallow. Just my first of many bouts of Strep that year-it seemed to be that symbol of "Stop. Rest. Slow Down." Because sometimes some of us need a real example to just stay put on a couch during the weekend and not move until the next week begins. 

Flash forward five years (it has been a while) and Thursday, the night of open house is just around the corner. I'm putting up all the decorations, we are completing last minute projects and all of a sudden, the exact same thing happens. At 1:00, I begin to shiver, I feel incredibly hot (and cold) and I realize that I can barely speak my throat hurts so badly. I thought to myself oh no...here we go again. 

Except this time was the ultimate test of strength because there was no going home anytime soon. Dismissal occurred around 3:30, and I continued to bustle about hanging last minute projects and hooking up my video the projector, making sure the book display looked good and adding an interactive experience for those who came through the doors. I did my best to smile and talk and laugh and interact with all of the excited families that walked through the door and then at 7:00, when it was finally over...I crashed. Hard. 

I held in the tears until we had picked up the medicine at CVS and for the first time in probably one year, I sobbed. The pain was unbelievable. And for someone with incredibly high pain tolerance-I just couldn't believe how much pain I felt in my joints and in my throat, my face and in my head. 

And it reminded me of one important thing which is: too much whimsy is sometimes devastating. When you are trying so hard to live a life full of passion and love and giving, you sometimes completely miss the fact that whimsy cannot be enjoyed unless you are truly present. And in order to be truly present, you have to be healthy. For someone always on the run, taking time for yourself is essential. And so I spent this weekend for the first time (mostly on the couch) a little bit of slow walking outside and a lot of good conversation. A sprinkle of whimsy is just enough to go after what you are passionate about. Too much whimsy and you end up drowning in sorrows.