It's Time To Take a Break
The Weary Heart #32
Every year ends the same way. We are exhausted, but still pushing. We are hurting, but still pretending. We are running, but not sure where we are running to anymore.
And at some point, our body, heart, and soul whisper the same message that we have ignored for far too long.
It’s time to take a break.
Most people think a break is what you take when you have nothing else to do. But the truth is, a break is what you take when everything in your life matters. When your goals matter. When your relationships matter. When your emotional health matters. When your connection with Allah matters.
Please get this right. Timely rest is not for the weak. It is for the wise.
Because if you keep moving without pausing, reflecting, or realigning, something precious will break. Sometimes it is your body. Sometimes it is your spirit.
And it will affect other things. Sometimes your marriage. And sometimes it is the person inside you that has been holding everything together.
You’ve done more than you realise
This final stretch of the year is not a time to sprint harder. It is an invitation to return to yourself. To sit quietly and ask the questions you have been postponing. To take stock of your life instead of rushing through it. To listen to what your heart has been trying to say beneath the noise of daily survival.
If you don’t pause to heal, life will pause you in a way you didn’t choose.
Most of us are extremely harsh on ourselves. We remember what we didn’t do. What we failed to finish. What we regret saying. What we could have handled better.
But we rarely give ourselves permission to acknowledge everything we actually did.
You made progress this year even if it didn’t look like the progress you hoped for.
You tried your best even on the days when your best felt small.
You carried responsibilities that not everyone saw.
You showed up even when you were breaking inside.
There is value in recognising that. It is not arrogance. It’s honesty. It’s a much needed closure for yourself.
Take time to look back on the past months without any judgement towards yourself..
What did you start this year that you are proud of?
What did you finish, no matter how long it took?
What are you still working on, and what does that say about your perseverance?
What did you learn about your strengths?
What did you learn about your wounds?
Reflection gives meaning to the journey. It transforms the year from something you survived into something you grew through.
Rest is not running away from your responsibilities, it is returning to the version of you that can handle them.
Relationships deserve a moment of truth
Before the next year arrives, make space in your heart to revisit the relationships that shaped you.
Some strengthened you.
Some drained you.
Some broke you.
Some saved you without even knowing it.
Ask yourself:
Did I love the people I love the way they deserved?
Did I allow others to love me the way I deserved?
Did I ignore the tension in certain relationships hoping it would disappear?
Did I protect my heart enough, or did I harden it too much?
The end of the year is a good time to make peace.
Even if reconciliation is not possible, clarity always is.
Your spiritual heart also needs attention
Sometimes what we really need is not a holiday, not a getaway, not a distraction.
What we need is an undisturbed time-out (I know this is a luxury for some - but try to plan for it). A moment alone with Allah. To express gratitude that we don’t acknowledge enough. To cry over pain we never processed. To heal wounds we left unopened because we were afraid of what they would reveal.
Something we all need:
أَلَا بِذِكْرِ اللّٰهِ تَطْمَئِنُّ الْقُلُوبُ
“Indeed, through the remembrance of Allah do hearts find peace.”
(Surah Ar-Ra’d 13:28)
Inner peace is not something you chase outside of yourself. It is something you return to inside yourself. Turn to Him for help, for guidance, and for peace to be restored into your life once again.
You are allowed to pause
You don’t need permission from anyone to take a break.
You don’t have to wait for a collapse, a fight, or a burnout to justify resting.
You don’t need to “earn” rest by suffering enough first.
The next chapter of your life does not require more effort from you, it requires a healthier you.
You are allowed to pause simply because you exist.
Because you matter.
Because you were not created to run endlessly without nourishment.
Take a break. Take a step back. Take a deep breath.
You don’t need to disappear from the world.
You just need to come home to yourself.
The Year is Ending, But You are Not
This is not the end of your story. It is the moment before the next chapter.
A chapter you can step into with a calmer mind, a clearer heart, and a stronger connection with Allah.
But only if you allow yourself to reset now.
So slow down.
Reflect on who you became.
Be grateful for what stayed.
Grieve what didn’t work out.
And forgive yourself for the mistakes you made along the way.
You are not behind. You are becoming.
And sometimes, becoming requires rest.
Remember to give your mind and soul a break too,
MW
🏝️ Take a break with me in beautiful Lombok this January. (half of the spots are taken!) Check out all the details HERE
“If you don’t pause to heal, life will pause you in a way you didn’t choose.” This hits me hard cos a lot of times it’s when the body is already crying out for help then I force myself to rest. MasyaAllah, thank you for the reminder, Ustaz.