Over the last two years, I've taken my Rest pretty seriously. I've guarded my time, been selective about who I share space with and have only pursued relationships which renew me. But, I've done all of this for the purpose of maintaining my minimum in order to keep producing Good Works.
In a Capitalist society, being a healthcare chaplain is a queer experience. We are one of the few service lines that does not produce income for the facility we're employed by. We're like - the Costco Chickens. Hospitals employ us because we add value to the healthcare team and the patient experience. But, they lose money on us and we know it. We are not measured by the income we produce, but the Good Works we contribute. Prior to the Pandemic, I watched Spiritual Care departments and Clinical Pastoral Education programs being removed from hospital budgets. Spiritual Care as a discipline stepped up during COVID, often at a cost to ourselves as providers.
Being a Chaplain during the Pandemic has been *LITERALLY* the hardest. I share in my covenant circles about the days that impact me the most. But, I don't really get to share the details. And, in some cases, I don't get to know the outcome of cases I'm involved in. Working in an environment, of which I can only share vague glimpses, is isolating. However, to have the broader public reject my lived experience as "Fake News" - is a whole other kind of crazy making. To be honest, I have only barely started the processing needed recover from the last two years.
Once we overcame the increase of COVID cases due to holiday gatherings, my hospital began to relax restrictions around visitation and masking. For the first time in two years, I'm seeing the full-face of people that I've been in the trenches with. I've heard my colleagues describe feeling 'overwhelmed' and 'overstimulated' as masking has relaxed. I've felt much of the same.
It seems impossible that after two years, my little world feels like it's breaking back open. Perhaps the Universe knew that this message from Rabbi Kukla was exactly what I needed to hear going into the next season. Even as the world appears to be reopening, I am entitled to Rest simply because I'm *human* and I *exist*. Rest does not have a Pandemic prerequisite. It also does not have to be connected to my ability to produce - whether that is profit or Good Works.
You, Beloved, also deserve to Rest. Not for the purpose of Labor. Not because we've been in a Pandemic. Not because you're feeling some sort of way as the world reopens. Rest because it is radical. Rest because it's necessary. Rest because it is your Divine right.
It seems impossible that after two years, my little world feels like it's breaking back open. Perhaps the Universe knew that this message from Rabbi Kukla was exactly what I needed to hear going into the next season. Even as the world appears to be reopening, I am entitled to Rest simply because I'm *human* and I *exist*. Rest does not have a Pandemic prerequisite. It also does not have to be connected to my ability to produce - whether that is profit or Good Works.
You, Beloved, also deserve to Rest. Not for the purpose of Labor. Not because we've been in a Pandemic. Not because you're feeling some sort of way as the world reopens. Rest because it is radical. Rest because it's necessary. Rest because it is your Divine right.
Pastor Anitta +
