Monday, December 13, 2010

Woolgathering

Its cold and dreary again today - sapping the spirit and energy right out of me. Winter would not be so bad if it were sunnier... instead of day after day of grey, clouds.

Today's word of the day (thanks again Merriam Webster) is woolgathering (indulgence in idle daydreaming). This is something that I have been guilty of at work these last few weeks (months?). I would have enough wool to make sweaters for a whole village if actual wool was gathered! Yesterday I literally wool gathered as I have a big bag full of Bella and Spike's hair!

One of the things I'm going to have to learn is that I don't have to be busy of every hour of every day. This will be especially important after I've retired. Sure sometimes now I'm not busy, but usually there is still a feeling that I should be doing something. But you know what - we are human beings not human doings so I'd better start practicing just being.

For today's idle pleasure I practiced just being. It was quiet, the dogs weren't clacking around, Grace was quietly preening. I curled up on the love seat (like one of Friendly Giant's comfy chairs) and let my mind rest being careful not to let to-do lists interfere with my thoughts. I concentrated on letting the tension and stress leave my body and mind and finding my inner smile. In the end I almost fell asleep. In the New Year I'm going to do some reading on meditation and then put it into practice. I think meditation is something good to fit into my new daily routine.

2 comments:

Barb said...

We've worked for many years, so it's no wonder we feel like we should always be busy. It's hard to get used to not having to do something every minute. I still feel guilty for spending an entire day with my computer and TV, going from one to the other, and suddenly it's dinnertime. I keep telling myself that I've earned it! So have you!

Laura said...

You are so right - its going to take a while to get used to! But I'll try really hard to get it right ;-)