By Gina Murphy-Darling [Mrs. Green] 

Recently I spent a weekend with an amazing group of women on a girlfriends’ getaway in Flagstaff, Arizona — just because. They came from all over the country to simply gather and have some down time.

With the mad-dash seasons of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s fast upon as, I am sharing this as a reminder to all of us to plug in our OWN charger just like we do with our cellphones, iOS devices (all things Apple), computers and streaming this and thats.

We really, really need to unplug and I mean totally unplug in whatever way that works for you – whether for a weekend or just a few blissful hours now and then. It seems to me that we all run at full speed these days and frequently forget the importance of taking care of ourselves, getting off the grid and simply spending time being present. Sustainability is an inside job; work just as diligently at scheduling time to just “be.”

Let me end with this appropriate quote from a true thought leader of our time, Michael Bernard Beckwith, Founder and Spiritual Director of Agape International Spiritual Center: “We now spend more time strengthening our thumbs texting and tweeting information rather than acquiring true wisdom, embodying and sharing what matters in real face-time because we have become impatient-it simply ‘takes too long.’ Our texts and tweets now travel faster than our cars!”

I took some time, I acquired some true wisdom and I spent real face-time being fully present with some amazing human beings. In other words, I am fully charged. Take care of yourself. You matter.