The Time We Once Complained About

I was taking a quick inventory of the time I devote to myself and the time I spend on things that do not feel like they are for me—time that, at times, can feel like a burden. Work, for instance. We often say, “We spend all our time working and have so little time left for ourselves.”

It is not easy to distinguish what is useful from what is not in such a quick assessment, because the hours we spend working nourish us in some way. They feed our minds; we make friends, create a new environment, and may even build a second home at work. We connect with people and create shared experiences, and all of that is part of living, too. It becomes a small source of support in our lives.

Of course, this depends in part on how positive that environment is for us, but—as with everything in life—not everything is rosy.

I want to be optimistic and think of that main setting as a healthy environment. When those working hours are no longer there—when we lose that time spent interacting beyond the walls of home—it can weigh heavily on us, and we deeply miss that connection with the outside world.

Even those people we may dislike for a moment, but whom we still want to see again.

Then there is the time spent grocery shopping, tidying up the house, or simply staring at the ceiling (lol). All of that time matters; it fulfills us and makes us feel useful.

When we enter a period of permanent rest—whether because of a job change, a company closure, or health problems—life begins to demand the very time we once complained about. The idea of “Friday” begins to carry a different weight. We find ourselves longing for, or remembering fondly, that optimistic Friday feeling—the moment when we would switch off work mode and ease into the weekend.

It is strange how we begin to miss the rush of activity: the conversations, the breaks, and the mental focus required by work. The small strategies involving clients, friends, or acquaintances—these, too, are part of living. They are the everyday victories that make us feel useful and connected.