The Wisdom of My Cat

Louis
Like a lot of people right now, my family is stuck at home as our country attempts to stop the spread of COVID-19. Thankfully, my job as a pastor allows me to still work from here, even if the work has become very different. 

I'll be honest though it's hard to figure out a new balance to work and life. I am prone to work most of the day because work is literally right here! And there's always one more quick task, or one more phone call to make, or one more email to send so it's way too easy to find myself at my computer late into the evening. 

However, I know that road leads to burnout and in this current state of affairs it would lead there pretty quick. And I need to stay healthy and alert, especially now. So I've taken some wisdom from my cat Louis (pronounced Louie). And tried to make sure I do two things in each day: Move and Nap. It's helped me and I think it could help others.

MOVE
Louis, like any cat, is given to bouts of dashing about the house. He also like to play with our dog (who loves it) and our other cat (who does NOT). So throughout the day he is running, playing, jumping, and doing what cats do. We humans need that too. YOU need that. You need to move, exercise, walk, dance, SOMETHING. You need to get your heart going and get your muscles moving. So try some exercise. It's good for your physical health and your mental health. As someone who has had anxiety for years, I can tell you that exercise is always recommended by professionals. Medicine and therapy are key, but exercise matters too. So, be like Louis get moving....just don't chase your dog....it'll freak them out.

NAP
Cats Nap. Everyone knows this. We even named short naps after them: cat naps. You need to nap too, no really. If you working at home, or just stuck there, take 20-30 minutes a day to nap. You will feel better, research proves it. Stress is exhausting, even low levels over a long enough time will run you down. Some companies recognizing the benefit of naps have allowed folks to do it at work. Now we have the convenience of having napping space literally around the corner. It's even biblical, Isaiah, Jesus and others all have stories showing the importance of naps! So do it. Nap like a cat. Don't sleep the day away, but relax and rest for around half an hour. You'll see a difference.

So that's it friends. Learn from the wisdom my cat. God Bless, Wash Your Hands, Move and Nap.

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