John Milton’s words, ‘They also serve who only stand and wait,’ have enticed me for years. Every time I begin to wonder about the worthiness of my existence, I am drawn to Milton’s words. When he turned blind at the mere age of forty-three, the poet was filled with self-doubt and wondered whether he would be able to do justice to the talents bestowed upon him by God! Would he be productive in any way? But more than his cynicism, it is the reconciliation towards the end of the poem that has always fascinated me. Those who do not ‘do’ also hold a place of significance in the scheme of this universe.
Have you ever heard of Niksen- the Dutch art of doing nothing? Read more about it in my post here…
“Niksen- Doing Nothing!” by Sonia Dogra https://link.medium.com/69G8pjNjx8
The idea of doing nothing itself makes me smile. But yes, it is hard to do nothing in this fast paced era with so much on our daily ‘to do list’.
Having said that, I would also like to confess that I spend a few minutes before going to sleep and few minutes after waking up( in bed itself) doing absolutely nothing. It is also true, at the same time that I never knew the name of this mindful practice. Thanks for introducing this amazing concept.
That’s a gorgeous header photo! I read your insightful article and left you a comment on Medium.
Thanks Liz! That’s the only time I remember in the last one year when I was staring into nothing for long. Trying to slow down again.
It’s so wonderful you find time to be by yourself Liz. I’ve been crazy with work this year..Just starting to slow down. Im planning to just let this year pass by now.
Tried responding on Medium but I’m still getting the hang of it.
Loved it … M going to read more of this concept. Thanks for introducing and writing in depth about it.
Thank you for reading. It’s wonderful. Lot of Ted Talk on the concept as well.
I loved reading this! I’m guilty of feeling the need to make every minute useful and purposeful. I believe that people my age and older (60s) were brought up by parents and grandparents who never had time to do nothing as all life tasks were more labour intensive. My mum never sat down in the evening without a pile of mending on her lap or a sweater she was knitting for whichever one of us needed it most. We grew up surrounded by adults who always had jobs which needed doing and the legacy is the guilt we feel if we’re idle.
I’ve forwarded to my daughter who is a psychotherapist and a passionate believer in the value of mindfulness.
You are quite right. In India sitting without work was ridiculous. How can you waste time? So much so that we landed up stuffing every single second.
I’m glad you found it worthy of being shared.
I am going to look up more on the said term. And oh Milton does entice but I do remember something said that every person holds some kind of importance in this world, whether he knows it or not. Something to stand by, I guess.