Looking out my Backdoor: Be happy, don't worry, be lazy

Easy to say. Difficult to pull off.

Oh, oh. I see you are giving me the stink eye over my use of “Be lazy.”

My friend and I grew up on neighboring farms. Our fairy godmothers waved magic wands at our births and gifted us with the gift of “Busy.” You know, as in “An idle mind is the devil’s workshop and idle hands his tools.”

My grandma used to actually say that to me. Frequently. She raised my dad, of course, so I come by some things served up in a double-dip cone. Let me say that I was never bored.

Likewise with my friend, maybe even more so. She is still active in several organizations and committees, both civic and community, along with library and book club functions, maintains contact with friends and relatives around the world, organizes family events and the usual list of home and garden duties. Both she and her husband have health issues. She has been juggling, struggling to keep all the plates spinning, keep them from crashing and smashing on the floor.

You get the picture. My friend is one of these wonderful, incredible, persons who make sure the sun comes up and the sun goes down and the world keeps turning. I say that with absolute admiration and respect.

Recently, her doctor suggested that she try a small measure of “do nothing.”

If I were a gambling person, I’d put money on A: This I’ve got to see! Or B: It will be a struggle!

We who know and love this woman are encouraging her to slow down, be lazy, let the dust bunnies pile in corners. I know she won’t go that far, but it is a goal to strive toward, not necessarily to achieve. You know, progress, not perfection.

Let me attempt to defend the word “lazy.” If I were still in charge of the world and writing the dictionary, instead of indolent or slothful, I’d say lazy might mean “differently motivated.”

On the other hand, notice my hesitancy to be all-inclusive. Let me hold the traditional use of lazy in reserve while I think this through.

I am a contrary and judgmental human. It is possible that some few people might be inherently slothful. I know one who, oh, never mind, let’s not go there. Perhaps some have not found a good reason to get up, go out and, you know, do it. And some who appear lazy may be a lot smarter than me and know better how to conserve their strength along the way.

(That reminds me of years ago when I finally learned to simply close my son’s bedroom door when he left it open. Instead of a slob, he was differently organized than me. I saw only the mess. He’d say, “Don’t touch my room, Mom. I know exactly where everything is.” And he did.)

Differently motivated being a possibility, let’s skip the extremes. Which is not a bad map for living life. Skip the extremes. One need not be a hibernating bear year-round nor does one need be an Energizer bunny.

Some of us have to learn to be lazy. We can start in little ways. I have two or three small suggestions to try. Since I am an older, somewhat traditional woman, so are my suggestions, geared toward my friend, who, well, we could be twins.

We all have to come up with our own solutions for how to be lazy in a positive way. And you will ignore mine anyway, so here goes.

Everybody agrees that making a list of tasks to do today is an essential tool. Make the list. Make it long. Read it twice. Figure out which is naughty and nice. Have a cuppa and toss the list in the waste basket. You’ve already done the most important thing. You made the list.

If, perchance, dust bunnies bother you, go take a leisurely stroll around the neighborhood. Listen to the birds, smell the flowers, or the snow, enjoy the beauty of the sky. What you don’t see, doesn’t exist. If that doesn’t work for you, try dark glasses.

Christmas dinner for family does not have to include 17 side dishes. It’s okay to use food that came from a can or a box, especially when it can so easily be enhanced or disguised. We learned every trick back when we had a job and children. Better yet, let one of the children make Christmas dinner this year. Start a new tradition.

God invented take-out food and ready-meals just for folks like us, should we get desperate.

Those are a few suggestions to jump start you on your road to a lazier life.

However, if you are not retirement age or older, ignore all the above, you lazy bum, and get to work.

——

Sondra Ashton grew up in Harlem but spent most of her adult life out of state. She returned to see the Hi-Line with a perspective of delight. After several years back in Harlem, Ashton is seeking new experiences in Etzatlan, Mexico. Once a Montanan, always. Read Ashton’s essays and other work at http://montanatumbleweed.blogspot.com/. Email [email protected].