Cynthia Rigby mentioned last week, when she lectured about imagination at our Presbytery meeting, that everybody seems to be tired. She's right. It's how we now live.We are Tired People.
Notice how many people, when asked how things are going, will say, "I'm tired." Or "I'm really tired." Or "Things are crazy busy and I'm a little tired." Or "I've never been so tired."
My grandmother raised seven children on a farm without a dishwasher, and I never heard her say she was tired. Of course, she didn't also have to run the kids to an array of activities, commit to PTA events, work outside the home to pay the mortgage, or keep tabs on her email every day. Still . . .
When will this stop? I'm thinking that by the time I'm not dealing with parenting my kids and going to meetings and working to pay the mortgage,* my bones will be too tired to do some of the other things I hope to do.
There is a website called simply http://www.tired.com/. They want to know why we are tired. Slate wrote about this site a few years back. No answers are offered by the people/tired guy at that site. They just want to know why we are the way we are.
I don't want to be tired, and so I am asking - for the sake of abundant life and for all of us -- let's encourage each other not to work all the time, not to over-function. 
Mostly, let's give each other (and ourselves) a break.
Cartoon by Drew.
Painting is of Sukkot by unknown artist .
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8 comments:
Trying today. Thanks for the encouragement.
Ain't it the truth? Aint' it the truth?
I've pared my life down to just essentials (blogging being the only self care item I have left) and I still have no time.
...and yet somehow I have the feeling that this is the idea for us. Cause now we're too tired to make any profound change like society was able to do in the sixties.
Right on, Jan. This expresses well why I have discontinued blogging. I am limiting my computer time to maximum 1 hour/day and using the additional hours I was "sitting" at computer, for endeavors that for me are more meaningful and healthy ...walking, reading, and engaging in one-on-one, personal, real-time conversation. Serena
I've always appreciated the BBT quote along the lines that Sabbath was something we were so reluctant to take that God had to make it a commandment. God knows what it's like to be tired, and I know God doesn't want us in that state all the time! But I know what tired is, too.
This is such a good and thoughtful post.
Thanks.
PS: I have done the Avon Walk and will be walking again this coming June. You could come, too. It's the opposite of tiring...
Preach it!
I'm loving the Sabbath Experiment. Granted I am still drag-a$$ing around a lot of the time, but at least I know, a chunk of rest is always less than a week away.
And if anyone needs encouragement to put their feet up with a nice cup of fragrant hot tea this evening, the word verification is "hrbal."
Sabbath, yup and earth-time. As in, putting your feet on it. Or your butt. I think our bodies miss the ground. And that makes us tired.
I'm sure everyone has probably already read it, but one of my favorite books on this subject is Mark Buchanan's "The Rest of God: Retstoring Your Soul by Restoring Sabbath." Beautifully written and a beautiful, vital message.
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