I lead a fairly hectic life. I get a lot done, but not nearly as much as I could, and certainly not as much as I should. My schedule is full, but like everyone else, I always try to squeeze more in. A typical week for me involves 17 hours of honors college classes (plus all the associated home work and studying), 25 hours of "real world" work, several hours of planning and events as an executive of my school's Ambassador program, being prepared to drop everything I'm doing to help the younger students that I mentor, and trying to eke out some sort of social life. Oh, and sometimes I get to sleep, eat, and bathe ; )
So why is the first question I hear when I go home for the odd weekend or two a month "What have you done all week, nothing?"
Don't get me wrong, this isn't an entry of me whining about how my parents treat me, or me feeling like I have too much on my plate. This entry is about the disparity of priorities that we, as children, seem to run into with our parents.
Why would my dad even suggest that I've done "nothing" in a week? Is it simply a case of him not knowing my schedule, or how busy it is? Or is it the fact that his priorities are on such a vastly different plane than mine, that he really thinks all the things I've accomplished are incosequential?
Obviously, I haven't done "nothing" this week. As a matter of fact, I feel I've done quite a lot. But wait, here comes the list of all the things I "should have done:" Laundry, called my parents, looked for a different job, saved more money, cured AIDS, traveled the globe, built a school for under-privilaged children in an African Third World Country, and become an Olympic Body-Builder. Oh, and my room needs to be cleaned.
Sorry, Dad, I'll get right on that...
But seriously, why do we always seem to think that other people's accomplishments are "nothing?" Why would we even suggest that someone else has done nothing of worth in a given amount of time. I think we should all take a step back, consider that other people have different priorities than we do, and evaluate everyone's accomplishments on an individual basis.
I haven't done "nothing."
You haven't done "nothing."
So don't say that we have.
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i agree with you...there's only so much time we can use being "productive" without going crazy from the stress, and yet we're always expected to do more.
recently a friend of mine was over, and his classes for the fall had started the previous week so he had class the next day, whereas my summer term (my college has mandatory summer terms, it's pretty awesome...) had just ended, but i was moving into my new room in my apartment and i had a whole list of other things to do...still, he told me i was lucky and that the next day i should enjoy doing "nothing"...i was pretty miffed. =P
--stacie