Too much work! Day 79

The socialists, the humanists and simplistic individuals argue for shorter work days of 5 to 6 hours. I’ve always thought that would be wonderful but I never truly understood the point to the argument until lately.


I really appreciate how Erich Fromm speaks of the time prison we’ve placed ourselves in. We are forced to wake at a specific time. We must work for a specific period of time. We have set bedtimes based on these demands. We’re always submitting to the clock. Once we’re offered a bit of freedom from our rigid routine we generally rebel and then simply waste time. When time isn’t pushing us around we tend to sit on our behinds and just ignore it. It seems that a shorter work day would offer more freedom. But what is freedom if you waste it? I’ve often felt surges of delight at the very mention of a shorter work day. To escape the time prison and have those few extra hours of unscheduled time, my heart soars at the thought. However I believe that my heart takes flight upon the dream of escaping time, of crawling out from its clutches, and childishly ignoring it, casting it off, and then of resting.

Work has been horrid lately. I’ve experienced several weeks with little work. I’ve routinely completed my tasks, headed home early with a glee for having the opportunity of escaping, and then I proceed to complete the remainder of the day sulking for the money I’ve lost and the bills I’ll inevitably be unable to pay. The dreadfully slow weeks are then followed by an outpouring of work. Last week was so busy that I had difficulty finding time to think, to relax, and to breathe. This week is turning out to be even worse. I want to appreciate each moment. I want to spend time increasing, growing, and reflecting upon the world which surrounds me. I desire adamantly to commune with God. I know of little else I enjoy as much as studying scriptures and speaking to my Heavenly Father about them. Additionally I have a pile of books just waiting to be read, books I am practically craving. And yet day after day after day I wake before the sun, rush from my home, and toil quite speedily for longer than my mind is even capable of operating. Then I drive home just before the sun begins to set a bit soar, quite dazed, and extremely tired. This is followed by the nightly routine of exercise, dinner, and a little bit of rushed cleaning. During the rush of obligation I lose myself. Little thought escapes, no knew input finds its way in, and my eyes hardly manage to notice the world around me. I’m only recently realizing the true meaning behind the argument for the shorter work day. While I’m diligently working it’s practically impossible to simultaneously be living.

Tired people waste time, their minds run down and their bodies exhausted. People who live like people, not like machines, they’re able to function like people, to appreciate life and to live it. We aren’t machines.