La Dolce far Niente dal Mare
It can be difficult to slow down. To take a rest day, a day off from work, to simply pause and relax. Even in crazy times like this, when we’ve basically been told to take a step back and stay in, life gets busy and wild. Whether on a normal work day or on days when you don’t have much to do, the world can spiral out of control. For me, rest days are always hard. It doesn’t matter if it’s a day off from work or school, taking a break from exercising, or just having extra free time…my mind starts to whirl. I always feel the need to be doing something. Be productive. Check off that item on the to-do-list (and believe me, I have plenty). I can’t seem to slow down and simply ‘exist’.
I’m not sure where exactly this feeling comes from, but I know it’s not purely from within myself. American society tends to push people to the breaking point. Work without pause, racing without rest, celebrating those who do more and sacrifice their own health and wellbeing just to get an inch ahead. But is it really worth it? To give up things that bring you joy just to earn a couple more dollars or run the extra mile just to get shin-splints from doing it too often?
As I grow older I feel less inclined to follow the beaten path set out for me by the standards and stereotypes the society I grew up in deems worthy of praise.
Yet one of the things I still struggle with the most is productivity versus relaxation. For some reason, my brain thinks rest is a reward, and if I haven’t done enough that day I don’t ‘deserve’ to sit down and take a break. Which may be another side-effect of growing up in a work-reward system instead of the belief that things can be freely given and reciprocated in turn. Not everything has a dollar tag attached to it. Most things worth caring about don’t. Your life won’t be remembered by sums and minuses, tax returns and bank accounts. Your life will be remembered by who you were as a person. How you influenced those around you. Not necessarily the things you did…grand expeditions and harrowing tales are wonderful for some people, but some people prefer the simple life where joy can be found in the smaller moments in life that are equally as beautiful as the grander times. Delivering cookies to friends on a random Sunday afternoon, sharing a loaf of bread with your neighbors, laughing after falling while attempting a cartwheel for the sixtieth time.
The following poem is inspired by that feeling. The moments reminiscent of the Italian phrase my father likes to (often) remind me of, ‘la dolce far niente’ or the ‘sweetness of doing nothing’. There is beauty in pausing, enjoying the slower moments. Something I actually felt and enjoyed one Saturday by the seashore.
La Dolce Farniete dal Mare
Lazing
On the beach, sand in my hair On my skin
The taste of salt
On my tongue
Gazing
Across the shore
Watching sea birds strut
Little crabs crawl
Over rocks and seaweed
Wandering
Through tide pools
Stepping over waves
Heating up under the sun
Cooling off in the water
Searching
For interesting rocks and shells
Small creatures
Brilliant blue sea glass
Popping up in unexpected places
Saturdays
On the beach
Worries cast aside
The future far away
Resting in the present
Enjoying the sunshine,
the water,
the slow, easy thrum of life
By the ocean