lazy lazy lazy

sometimes I think of myself as lazy

There are days that I do absolutely nothing productive and I can hear the voices of society telling me I am wasting time.

But isn't it my time to "waste"

What is this obsession with productivity and who gets to decide what is "productive" in my life if not me?

Understand, I am a sprinter. I am a whirlwind of activity and then depending upon that activity, it takes me time to recoup and recover. I don't think of this as a waste of time, but a necessary recharge for my personal battery.

Frankly, spending a day or two with someone I care about, doing next to nothing, just being together is something important to the growth and development of any relationship. People who have to have something to "do" together aren't going to make it as a couple.  But I digress.....

This society is obsessed with productivity. Individuals are told that if you aren't producing you have no value. The kicker is, it isn't about creativity or art or even mowing your lawn, this is all about being a cog in the wheel of the corporate machine.  This is about working 40 to 60 hours a week to "get ahead" - now no one is sure exactly who they are racing - but there is a race and you are losing! Americans hate to lose even if they didn't know they were playing, so they run the "rat race" to "win" the "brass ring" - which never appears for most part, because it is a big myth - to get you back on the treadmill each week of a 40 + hour week.

Sure there are the one in a million who "win". The successful movie producer, real estate mogul or attorney who have risen above their meager beginnings to wealth and/or fame. Someone that demonstrates that you too can "win".  My question is - do you want to?

I don't think most people want to be a multi millionaire except for the ease it would be on our financial minds. Most of us are content to live our lives within moderate means, a home, a vehicle (if needed), enough to eat, health care and good people around us. The last one is the real key. Relationships make our lives worth the time, energy and any sacrifice, and many people run the treadmill of "success" to provide for their families, which is valid, however society has hijacked that drive and transformed it into why we live.

I put forth an alternative: we work to live. We work to spend those lazy days with the people we love. Yes, there are projects outside of paid work, there are houses to clean, yards to weed, and maintenance in our lives to be done, but we should not denigrate the time spent with love ones "doing nothing" because we are doing one of the most important things humans can do. We are developing relationships and loving each other.

Even doing nothing alone we are taking care of ourselves by resting our mental facilities and recharging our batteries. There is value to rest.

Americans need to learn to stop beating themselves up for taking care of themselves.

Get off the treadmill occasionally and spend quality time "doing nothing" with someone you love.