“The rhythm of life is a powerful beat,” proclaims the song from the Broadway show “Sweet Charity.” This is a fun song, and has a catchy tune and lyrics, and certainly catches what I feel our society thinks is the rhythm of life today. I have been thinking, though, during this time of staying away from work, groups of people, and social activity to avoid and slow down the COVID-19 virus, that the rhythm of our modern life leaves much to be desired.
Rhythms fill our lives, certainly. The heart beats, the seasons change, there are times of rest and times of work or play. All of nature has rhythm. As the Bible points out in Ecclesiastes 3, “There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:”
What I have noticed in my own life is this: our modern society has a terrible sense of rhythm. Every job, organization, school, and group of people demands my time. Every activity, no matter how wholesome or beneficial, requires something of me. It is no wonder stress is such a modern cause of disease and death.
Also in the Bible, Jesus himself emphasized the importance of rest. In Mark 6:31, we read “Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, ‘Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.'” Isn’t that what you feel sometimes, when the pressures of work and family and social life gets to you? Sometimes you don’t even feel like you have a chance to eat, you are so busy!
This time of forced isolation has been illuminating to many people, I think, and I hope that it has been a time when we have been able to get to know ourselves better. I have also appreciated the forced slow down, and time to rest. I hope that I can carry that back into my life after the fact. Take breaks, vacations, and mental health checks. Do what revives and renews your spirit. De-stress, de-toxify mentally and physically if you have to. Refuse to dive into the raging river of modern life. Sit on the bank and listen to the birds sing or watch the sunset. Dance to a slower rhythm. Rest.