Saturday Sabbath
As an educator, I arrive home on Friday wanting to just lay on the couch all weekend. The week is exhausting in ways that are hard to explain to people who haven’t lived it. I look to the weekend to recharge — to gather myself enough to get back at it on Monday.
My Saturday sabbath begins with a dog walk. I let the frustrations of the week run free in my brain for a while, and then I flush them away. After that, a short walk to the neighborhood coffee shop where I can sit outside in the sunshine — sipping coffee, watching dogs, and using my analog bag: just a journal and a book. No laptop on Sabbath day.
When you plan your sabbath, fill it with things you actually look forward to. For me, that’s sports. Today it’s Chelsea vs. Man United, the Cubs playing the Mets, the NBA playoffs kicking off with the Lakers and the Rockets, and of course — WrestleMania. Along the way I’ll do laundry, grocery shop, walk the dog, and spend time with family. But work will wait until Monday.
Waiting for a waffle, drinking an Americano on a still Saturday morning.
I noticed a row of coffee cups with metal filters resting on top, two small sticks propped on each side holding them in place. I asked what she was doing, and she told me it was the traditional way Vietnamese coffee is made.
I have a single-use packet of Vietnamese coffee at home — purchased from Costco — where the cream, sugar, and instant coffee are all in one packet. Heat some water, pour, and done. Easy coffee for a morning rush.
But there was something soothing, almost artistic, about watching this process unfold as I waited for my waffle. In a world of apps that let you order from your car and walk straight to the counter — eliminating the wait entirely — it was a quiet reminder that there is still value in moving slower. In reducing your pace. In allowing the day to unfold.
It’s easy to do on a Saturday morning. The real question is: can we carry any of that into the week?
Educator burnout is at an all-time high — and one of the quietest reasons may be that we never fully stop. What would it look like for you to carve out even one intentional sabbath this weekend, and what would you put in it that’s just for you?