Thought for today:

We talk about “time-wasting” like it’s a bad thing, but it’s not.  Sometimes, wasting time helps us break through a barrier.

A member shares:

“I am a workaholic.  I work all the time to pay bills and creditors.  Even when I am not on the job, I need to be productive.  I never have simple down time.

“I heard once that I needed to learn how to be lazy.  If I didn’t, I was going to produce a corpse, and the worst part would be that I never really had fun.

“I had to learn to take days off where I did nothing.  That was the hardest thing to do, because it forced me to feel the feelings I was running from.

“My self-talk was horrible.  I beat myself up for the down time.  Keep in mind, I wasn’t watching TV or reading.  I was just sitting and letting go of feelings.

“I broke through some grief over losses during my ‘lazy time’.  I rediscovered an appreciation for conversation that I had lost.  I learned that I am more than what I do.”

Time to be

Sometimes, we  need to let time unfold naturally.  Doing this is instructive and fun.

There is no point in relentless pursuit of perfect use of time.  We will never enjoy time if we let it run us into the ground.

We need to allow ourselves to be consciously lazy and unproductive.  This requires work for some of us, but when we are successful at it, we will feel ourselves living more fully.

Ask: