This past week, I found myself sick in bed, my body aching and stuffy, demanding I remain horizontal. I reluctantly complied, despite having just entered my inner spring—a time I usually associate with boundless energy.
But my body had other plans.
While surrendering to this pause, I quietly drifted into the world of Netflix nature documentaries. As one does. Hour after hour, I watched animals and plants adapt, survive, and simply be. One scene stuck with me, a family of monkeys covering their bodies with orange rinds to use the citronella as mosquito repellent (how brilliant is that?). Afterwards, they spent the rest of the day lounging on thick tree branches high in the sky.
No guilt. No shame. Just peace, relaxation, and presence.
I can’t stop thinking about these monkeys. If you’ve read a few of my other essays, you know I’ve been grappling with the constant outward demands of living in a productivity-driven society and my inner longing to lean more deeply into the flow of my divine Feminine. Just like those monkeys. They weren’t concerned with being “productive” in the way we often define it. They intuitively knew when to act and when to rest, effortlessly embodying a rhythm of life that is so at odds with our hustle culture. Watching them, I felt a sense of longing—to live with that kind of presence, without guilt, without the constant pressure to do more or be more.
Their simplicity and peace reflected what I’ve been craving: the permission to just be without the expectation of endless output.
In a world that tells us our worth is tied to how much we produce, the natural balance of these creatures felt like a reminder that rest is not a luxury, but a necessary part of life. And maybe, in their quiet moments of lounging on those tree branches, they were more in tune with their essence than we often allow ourselves to be.
After watching that scene, I had a therapy session. Naturally, I brought it up, and we started unpacking it. My therapist proceeded to ask me a question that left my speechless…
What does rest look like for you?
I came to a startling realization that I had no freaking clue. Was it an hour of doom scrolling? An afternoon at the park with my favourite sci-fi novel? Sipping a lunchtime smoothie while watching the latest Hot Ones interview? Spending time with my partner and loved ones? These were the moments I considered "rest" because they were the only times I wasn’t consumed by thoughts of what I needed to do or feeling guilty for not doing it. Even my daily regulation walks were born out of a need to regulate so I could come home and get more work done.
I’m not saying reading a book in the afternoon sun or spending quality time with the people you love most aren’t nourishing, but they still require a level of engagement. They’re still “activities,” even if they’re activities you enjoy.
But are they rest?
Or are they just moments of distraction from the guilt of not doing enough?
As I continue to sift through these questions it’s becoming clear to me that true rest is found in the stillness, in moments where there’s nothing to do, no goal to achieve—just being. This almost always happens in nature. To simply sit on the plush mossy surface of the forest floor, to lounge on the backside of a giant boulder on the edge of a lake, to drape your body over a thick tree branch high in the sky. No distractions. No need to do anything but be in the present moment. It’s here where we connect back to ourselves. It’s here where we plug back into our life force. Being in nature invites a way to reset without an agenda, just a quiet reconnection to something bigger than the endless doing.
For me, it’s easy to consciously understand how important spending time in nature is but it’s still difficult to shed the constant pressure to be productive, even in moments meant for rest. The conditioning runs deep. We live in a world that rewards hustle and busyness, where slowing down feels counterintuitive or even indulgent. But watching those monkeys, so at peace with doing nothing, reminded me that rest isn’t just a break from productivity—it’s a vital part of our being. It’s a chance to recalibrate, to listen to our bodies, and to realign with our natural rhythms.
I’m learning that rest doesn’t have to be productive. It doesn’t have to lead to anything. It can just exist on its own, like the monkeys lounging in the treetops. And maybe, in those quiet moments of true rest, I can reconnect with parts of myself that get buried under the constant need to be doing, achieving, or performing.
And maybe, just maybe, I can learn to let go of the guilt and simply be.
Until next week,
Angelica x
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I guide women through the sacred art of unravelling—shedding layers of conditioning, self-protection, and doubt that have distanced them from their Truth. Rooted in deep presence, energy healing, and somatic integration, I weave together intuitive guidance and nervous system support to help you reclaim your power, soften back into your wholeness, and return to the radiant Truth of who you are.
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