Friday, July 8, 2011

Take A Break

Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation. For when you come back to your work, your judgement will be surer.

Leonardo DaVinci
**************************
I once heard a joke that went "Keep your eye on the ball, your shoulder to the wheel and your nose to the grind stone and then try to work that way."

Life, like the slowly spinning globe we live on, is a moveable thing and we must have the intelligence to move with it. One of man's most destructive traits is possessiveness. A man who owns a business has the right to possess it, but when he starts believing he owns the people who work for him there's trouble. Similarly when a worker starts thinking he owns his job, there's more trouble. I saw a woman come to work one morning at about 5 minutes to 8. She found an all night worker sitting at her desk who was just finishing up his night's work. They got into an altercation in which she said that he was sitting at her desk. He pointed out it was not her desk, it was the company's desk and it had been his work place for the night and he was almost finished. This woman could not deal with it. She wanted him gone right then, When he finished his work and got up from the desk she said he had ruined her whole day. Well now, isn't that a shame.

That woman and others like her have dug a hole for themselves, a neat comfortable fantasy from which they do not want to be disturbed, a solitary prison cell.

I have seen too many case of people, from top management down to temporary workers, who have become slaves to their work. And it's really a matter of attitude. No one should claim that a job should not be done as efficiently as possible, whether one is working for oneself or others. But the tide turns. If we continually hold our breath we'll pass out.

During my career I was always glad to have time off. I didn't spend it frivolously. If I hade a script to work on it was with me. And I found that each day of rest was also a day of discovery, a clearing up of the mental desk, a reorganizing of the information and evidence of my life and my art.

I read somewhere that some wild animals, and perhaps all of them, have down time. What that says it that the relentless pursuit of something or other is just not natural. If Mother Nature gives the goose, the lion and the manatee an occasional park bench in the shade, who are we to go against her wishes?

DB - The Vagabond
*************************

SUMMER QUESTION

It's a long, hot, sticky summer, so here's a hot, sticky question for you. Don't let the recent New York State decision rob you of your thunder.

Same sex marriage. Should it be legal or not? If so, why? If not, why not?

dbdacoba@aol.com

8 answers so far.

You have until the last day of summer, but don't dally.
I eagerly await your answer.

DB
************************

6 comments:

Geo. said...

Well you've struck chord! Sometimes it takes a while to find work one is happy with. I worked 10 years indoors before realizing I was a gardener. So I went outdoors and did that for 30 years and felt much better. Retired 2 years ago in an abiding state of surprise.

Big Mark 243 said...

I always have found that for many, the intensity of their toil often blinds them to the achievement of their work. The idea of stopping to smell the roses is how we gain perspective. For some, they cannot appreciate not only the efforts of other on their behalf but the spoils of what they have attained by hard-won victory.

(sniff!) Walking by a garden of flowers!!

Valerie said...

I had to become disabled and NOT able to work before I could realize what my life's work really was. It took alot of contemplation. Great post, DB!

Ken Riches said...

I use computer games to get some downtime every evening, helps relax and recharge for another day.

Inday said...

"I found that each day of rest was also a day of discovery, a clearing up of the mental desk, a reorganizing of the information and evidence of my life and my art." - I find this inspiring. This reminds us that all work no play makes Jack and Jill dumb and dull folks. After all we are indeed require to keep a one day rest each week and that is to be rendered holy - for our sanity and health sake. A time to recharge ...

Arlene (AJ) said...

It always amazed me when people made their job their whole life as if nothing else in life was important....really sad as they didn't allow theirselves to live and enjoy and if they had family they surely were always put second.Why have so many folks forgotten how to live and enjoy life versus work comes first,that's not truly living to me. Everyone needs to allow some time for theirself to relax and destress...don't know what I'd do without my cup of tea and a good book to make me find peace and comfort after a stressful day.