I look around me and have noticed how incredibly busy people say they are. The idea of busy is interesting to me because it gets wrapped up with the idea of importance.
Busy people are important, they have tasked to do, they have deadlines to meet, they are essential in the success of the business, or in their personal life. We have to look at this because I think the idea of busy relates directly to sustainability. And slowing our selves down is a correction in the path from an unsustainable life to a sustainable one.
Why are we busy? Expectations, interests, keeping up with the Jones, the need to get ahead, the need for coveting more... there is always more to do, more to say, more to experience. This is life.
Our minds have decided that being busy is a life style we want or... we HAVE to have.
When we are so busy we have to make priorities, of course my boss comes before me, of course my kids come before my partner, of course X comes before Y. This is the nature of trying to do everything all at once.
If we choose to do somethings quickly we have to take short cuts, and those short cuts have impacts, not only on us, but on the world. My short cut might be to buy pre-made foods, or order take out, or not exercise, or not be a part of my community, or not read about issues, or engage with people. The list goes on and we notice OH I have a little more time, so we add more things to our list and become even busier.
Another thing I notice about the idea of busy is that I am not used to the feeling of busy. So busy that I do not understand what to do with myself or my mind when I don't have something I need to do. SO I start to make up projects, fill in time, go shopping, all sorts of things. And soon I become bored. Because this busy, this filling in all sense of quiet with consumption of things and duty has me locked into a feeling that I cannot escape.
Who I am I and what value am I if I have not output something today?
I have to answer this question because the busier I become the less useful I am. And I need to remain grounded if I am going to step out of the race and look for some kind of alternative....
I'll get to that, but in the meantime - like my plants I planted?
2 comments:
Great line, "The busier I become the less useful I am."
great post! a lot of sociologists are writing about the impact of ICTs on scheduling and demands on time. One is called "No time" by Heather Menzies. Elizabeth Shove writes about sustainability and convenience in "comfort, cleanliness and convenience" which broadens it to sustainability concerns and impacts on resource use. both really good books on this topic!!
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