Busy doing nothing

On the cusp of a sandspit, where land peters out like an unfinished sentence, we stopped for three days.

Three days of sharply clear water, crocheted with sunlight. Water so translucent you could see clusters of tiny hermit crabs, partying together. And yet, on the edges, where diminutive waves splashed daintily on shell-speckled shores, the churned-up sea was opaque with sand, glistening like liquid gold.

We didn’t move far from that stretch of sand, only venturing out here and there to local towns with bustling French markets and ornate café-lined squares, always buffering every outing with a return to the softness of the beach.

At first, the chance to relax seems too good to be true. Sometimes, we even feel guilty for stopping. Even on holiday, when we know we’re ‘allowed to’ relax, it can still take a few days to unwind, for the coiled-up stress of busyness to unfurl into rest. We are so used to being non-stop that something inside tells us we have to stay on the treadmill, even as we pack the sun cream.

Because it's true, there are seasons when life is unavoidably busy. But within that, there are also choices:

Keep following someone else’s schedule of rush?

Or take the quiet day of relaxation when it is offered? 

The truth is, we get awarded precisely zero medals for making ourselves unnecessarily busy, for following the agendas of others in order to fit in. We get nothing at all for this. But we can get caught in this guilt spiral where we observe other people’s busyness – whether genuine or imposed – and feel that in order to be a valid human being taking up space on this earth, we have to replicate it. That’s where the lie slips in. Sometimes, we will be genuinely busy doing things that rightly deserve our time and attention, but sometimes there is a chance to stop and catch breath.

Resisting the busyness lie does not make you lazy. It does not mean you don’t care. It means you’ve found some wisdom.

Because there is a whole world of difference between being busy fulfilling your God-given calling and being busy trying desperately to feel like a valid and 'real' person. One clear marker is that the former should always allow space to rest and breathe…

…and you will feel more yourself, not less.

You are not competing with anyone for your space in this world.