The Problem With Saturdays
Saturday afternoons are my favorite time of the week. I get done with work at 1:00 and have the whole weekend stretching ahead of me. The first thing I do is have a cup of tea with my lunch while reading my favorite book blog, “Modern Mrs. Darcy.” Then I take a nice long nap and (during football season) watch the Baylor game. I love Saturday afternoons. I HATE Saturday mornings. I only work four hours, and you would think those hours would pass by in happy anticipation, but it’s the opposite. Those are the longest and most unpleasant hours of the week. For a long time I couldn’t figure out why. It’s such a short workday! There’s so much to look forward to afterwards! I finally realized that’s the problem- I spend those four hours looking forward to what comes after. It reminds me of one of my favorite articles, “How to Be Happy Anytime” by Leo Babauta. He says, “Why should you compare what you’re doing now…with anything else? Wouldn’t almost anything lose out if you compare it to something you like more? Will you ever be happy with what you’re doing if you always compare it with something you like more?” Yes- if I’m at work but thinking about lounging on the couch watching football, of course work is going to seem unpleasant. There’s no reason to compare the two things, and the very fact that I’m looking forward to post-work activities implies that I’m not happy with what I am doing. Realizing this is a great first step, but what do I do about it? Well, for one thing, I can try to make Saturday mornings more pleasant. Years ago when I was experimenting with intermittent fasting (I don’t do that anymore) I used to fast on Saturday mornings, which was the WORST IDEA EVER. It made the morning a truly miserable time to get through, four hours until I could eat and enjoy my life again. Now I sleep in a little on Saturdays, eat a nice breakfast, and drink my tea. I do everything I possibly can to set myself upto feel good for the morning. It’s still a work in progress though- sometimes I’m able to immerse myself in what I’m doing, and sometimes I’m still thinking “Just three more massages… two more massages… just one more…” The point of Leo’s article is that any activity can be pleasurable if you look at it the right way. Appreciate it for what it is instead of comparing it to anything else. I’ve mentioned it before on the blog, but it’s worth repeating, and the article is worth reading again and again. “Life will suck if you are always wishing you’re doing something else. Life will rock if you realize you’re already doing the best thing ever.” Here we go again- Saturday morning. Let’s see if I can make it the best thing ever.