I Was Just Thinking by Don Huntington The Advantages of Chilling Out www.donwriteforyou.com 925-634-7927

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A sense of repose and relaxation are essential characteristics, though often overlooked, for anybody wishing to put their whole self into life...

I admit to having a lazy streak. After spending a week aboard a houseboat on the California delta a number of years ago during which I did nothing but read and loaf in the sunshine, I wondered if I am the kind of person who could happily do nothing in particular for the rest of my life. However, I realize that it would be impossible for me to continue perpetually to live in such a state — not because of any innate restiveness, but because something would inevitably attract my passion and draw me back into engagement with life.

I am often charged up and throwing myself into some activity with all my will, as Chambers says in the key quote for this column. During such times I certainly do accomplish things and reach goals I’ve set for myself. Over the course of two days I once put in more than sixteen hours per day on a couple of projects — not going to bed until after 2:00 a.m. On two separate occasions I worked 36 hour stretches, not stopping except for bathroom breaks. During one particularly frantic period a number of years ago, I put in more than 90 hours a week for several weeks.

During such periods of intense engagement, I really am living life at a different level than while lazing in the sunshine with some piece of escape fiction. On the other hand, during slower periods — those times when I am relaxing or engaged in some pleasant diversion — I don’t feel that I am “merely existing,” to use Chamber’s term. Chamber was missing something important; he might have profited from John Lennon’s wise observation, “Time you enjoyed wasting was not wasted.” I enjoy reading a good novel, surfing the Internet, and playing card games with my friends and family members. Most of all I relish hours spent with my beloved wife during which we do nothing that anyone would recognize as fun, but that come as wonderful and satisfying gifts. During these times, I usually feel perfectly alive. After all, the Bible truthfully says:

I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil — this is the gift of God.

During experiences that might make me anxious or aggravated — such as driving in traffic, for example — I find the principle of relaxation can exert an especially happy effect. Thich Nhat Hanh — a Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk — spoke about the possibility of deriving good from such times:

When you drive around the city and come to a red light or a stop sign, you can just sit back and make use of these twenty or thirty seconds to relax — to breathe in, breathe out, and enjoy arriving in the present moment. There are many things like that that we can do.

Dr. Joyce Brothers, extended Thich Nhat Hanh’s advice about repose into a daily discipline: “No matter how much pressure you feel at work, if you could find ways to relax for at least five minutes every hour, you'd be more productive.”

A person who can measure quality of life only in terms of action or production is missing some wonderful gifts that a loving God has put into this world. In addition, such a person would be difficult to live with. Who would wish to continually be around someone who could never relax or have fun without feeling guilty for fear they were missing out on the opportunity of doing something productive?

If pleasure becomes an end in itself or assumes an unhealthy position as the main objective in life, then my life really will become an empty, ultimately unsatisfying experience. Pleasurable experiences are the frosting on top of the cake of a balanced life. If I throw away the “cake,” I certainly will become sick in a very short time. On the other hand, if I throw away the “frosting” of pleasant activities, I needlessly deny myself proper and God-given blessings.

I’m grateful for times when I can exert myself and accomplish things for Heaven and for the good of others. Nevertheless, I’m so thankful for pleasant times of relaxation and fun. Both types of experiences become satisfying examples of His blessing. Being able to “chill” — to just sit back on occasion and enjoy life at an easier pace — provides good flavoring to the recipe of a balanced life.

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