I am learning a lot about rest recently. I can't do it all. That is something I, frequently, need to be reminded of. I just can't do it all. It is my job to communicate with each group to get what they need and relay it to our staff so that group can have a superb week and can focus on their campers. Sometimes I do not get all the information or something changes last minute (plot twist!) and it is my responsibility to address the problem and find a solution. Sometimes the problem is "we need more toilet paper" which is easy to fix. Sometimes it is "we need to add 200+ people for a sack lunch tomorrow" and I have to figure out how to do that.
Summer is when I am most stressed. I can mostly figure out how to handle things and do so with grace. Other times it is really hard not to get frustrated or stressed. I just received feedback from one of our bigger summer groups from last summer. They praised our summer staff and the time they had at camp that week. They mentioned a few things we could improve on and had a few comments for me. I was tired the week they were here. I feel bad for that. They arrived after a full day of cleaning after another large group and I had a 2+ hour long meeting with them til around 11 pm. So yes, I was a bit drained. As the week wore on and more and more issues arose I was not able to handle it as well as I could have.
'No' is a word I try not to use much in my guest relations position. I hate to tell groups they will not be able to do something or have something. When this particular group handed me an extra radio so they could get a hold of me whenever I found it hard to say no. When all 25 of their staff started contacting me at all hours I found it hard to say no. It took breaking down in our head chefs office in front of one of their leaders where I could finally say it. I could not handle it. I was not able to do it all myself and that was hard to admit.
Rest is so precious. It gives us the opportunity to take a step back and recuperate before we hit the ground running again. Rest is something that Christ does many times throughout the gospels and I love it when it is mentioned. He often went off by himself to rest. He spent his down time with his Father. Nothing in scripture is there by accident. The fact that Christ went away to pray and be by himself to rest is mentioned for a reason. Maybe it is a reminder that the Son of God needed to get away from everything also.
We live in a busy world. Where always having something to do or always working is not looked down on. But we need time to get away. There is so much joy when I can see a ruffled group come in Friday night to leave rested and much more peaceful Sunday morning. Everyone needs a chance to get away and pause for a moment. When we do not do that, things get messy and we can end up crying in the kitchen not knowing what to do.
I am learning to say no to some things that may put me in too deep. I am learning that it is ok to get away and rest. It is ok to spend time by myself to just stop and start over.
Our busy season is starting back up at camp and I am ready to get there. I am anticipating the chance to serve groups who need that rest. How are you finding time to rest when life gets busy?
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