The Virtue of Leisure

If I were to die today and able to speak at my funeral and offer one final message to my friends and family, I would speak of the virtues of leisure.  

In his book Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer, Brother David Steindl-Rast introduced me to a new definition of leisure and since then my relationship to time has been transformed. 

He says that leisure is not the opposite of work. Work and play are the two poles of all activity. When we work, we work for a purpose and when we play the emphasis is on the meaning of the activity.

“In play, all the emphasis falls on the meaning of your activity … Play needs no purpose … we do not dance in order to get somewhere … a piece of music doesn’t come to an end when its purpose is accomplished. It has no purpose, strictly speaking. It is the playful unfolding of a meaning that is there in each of its movements, in every theme, every passage: a celebration of meaning. Pachelbel’s Canon is one of the magnificent superfluities of life. Every time I listen to it, I realize anew that some of the most superfluous things are the most important for us because they give meaning to our human life.“

As an epilogue to my funeral message, I would offer as an invitation to liberate anyone from a conflicted relationship to time. 

Consider this…

·      The Chinese character for leisure is made up of two elements that by themselves mean open space and sunshine.

·      The Chinese character for being busy is also made up of two elements: heart and killing.

·      Our very heartbeat is healthy only when it is leisurely. It does not get tired, because there is a phase of rest built into every single heartbeat.

Am I living the beat and the rest of my heart? Are YOU living the beat and the rest of your heart? 

“Leisure is not a privilege but a virtue. Leisure is not the privilege of a few who can afford to take time, but the virtue of all who are willing to give time to what take time.”

The task of growing into the full measure of our earthly garments takes time, it takes ITS sweet time and it takes OUR sweet time ... open space… and sunshine.

Joanie Peters

*Joanie is looking forward to being with fellow leisure seekers at the Discovering Our Hidden Wholeness: An Enneagram Wisdom Retreat that takes place February 5-12, 2024 in Troncones, Mexico.