Today was officially designated as a Day of Rest. I had planned since last week that Monday I was resting. Resting my body, my mind, my energy...everything. Nothing was going to stress me out and I was going to go with the flow. The days and weeks leading up to this point were busy and a little stressful and did I say busy? I have been going nonstop for 3 weeks and today I got a break. So, last week I named it Day of Rest and now that the day is complete I will say it was perfect. Doing nothing can sometimes be just what a person needs.
It got me thinking about the book I've been reading Eat, Pray, Love. Liz has just completed her 4 month stay in Italy and as much as she ate, explored, went through a divorce, found a strengh in herself she didn't know she had and then ate some more, the thing that stuck with me the most was an expression the Italians use, "Il bel far niente", meaning the beauty of doing nothing. Doesn't that sound wonderful!
She goes on to say that even though the Italians are hard workers and long suffering laborers, the beauty of doing nothing is a cherished Italian ideal. "The beauty of doing nothing is the goal of all your work, the final accomplishment for which you are most highly congratulated. The more exquisitely and delightfully you can do nothing, the higher your life's acheievement." pg. 61.
I love this little Italian idea and from now on when life gets busy and I'm going and going I will be working for Il bel far niente and planning my next Day of Rest.
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