A friend called me last evening and
asked, “So, what did you do today?” “Nothing,” I answered. For once it was
true… at least for about an hour in the afternoon. Whether from a residual Puritan ethic or
a Becker-ian denial of death, most of us balk at doing nothing. We fill the time
with busy work or – if there is no work we feel motivated to do – with TV,
video games, and YouTube. The last three are the barest excuses for activities,
but they do distract us from our thoughts and awareness. An extreme approach to doing nothing is
to float in a sensory deprivation tank. This had a vogue in the 1960s because
of the occasional psychedelic effects, though users sometimes combined the
experience with actual psychedelics. The tanks have made a minor comeback in
the 21st century. Folks such as Joe Rogan, Jeff Bridges, Elle
Macpherson, and Kristen Wiig swear by them for the head-clearing and
revitalizing effects. Perhaps they are right. I haven’t tried it.
Sensory deprivation tank
I was less ambitious yesterday in my
inaction. I simply sat in a lawn chair and stared off into the woods. Sensory
deprivation was pretty much the opposite of the point. The warm wind flowed
over me, the birds tweeted, the squirrels leapt, the leaves rustled, and the
distinctive odor of freshly dug dirt (I don’t know from where) was in the air.
All the while I thought about nothing in particular. It turns out that this is a highly
recommended non-activity. Even Forbes
Magazine, with its unapologetic slogan “Capitalist Tool,” notes the value
of breaks like this on the job and off, as opposed to frenetically checking
emails and other unproductive busyness. “Doing nothing or having nothing to do,
are valuable opportunities for stimulating unconscious thought processes,” one Forbes author writes. “The suggestion
here is that as well as being the best thing for our mental health, doing
nothing – or slacking off – may turn out to be the best way to resolve complex
issues.” The author goes on to cite Archimedes in his bath and Paul McCartney
composing Yesterday in his sleep. I
haven’t had any insights on specific gravity, nor did I walk away from my
sit-down with the lyrics to a hit pop song in my head, but there were less
dramatic benefits. The refreshment was real, and the after-buzz surprisingly
long-lived. Rachel Williams, writing for Chopra, says, “A mindful way of life
encourages sitting down and pressing pause on your life from time to time,
giving yourself space to take a deep breath and simply be.” This, I think, is
the heart of it: the Zen of just being in the moment without accomplishing
anything else in particular. Or, worse, relying on booze and drugs to escape
the moment. Is all this just an attempt to make
being a lazy-ass sound like a virtue? To some extent, yes. But it helps that to
some extent it really is a virtue. Find a quiet spot without distractions
(kids, noise, electronics) and give it a try. The risk of overdoing it is low.
Sooner rather than later something is sure to intrude on the moment and demand
attention. There are so many things to do.
No comments:
Post a Comment