" . . . and I approve this message."

 

If I had the proverbial nickel for every time I have heard that phrase over the past six (?) months or so, I could make a sizable contribution to my favorite charity. And there is the  equally ubiquitous phrase, "This ad has been paid for by ______.".

Since 1948, I have observed elections with some degree of awareness (there were others; I simply was not engaged).  I do not remember an election campaign so filled with rancor as this year's - - -  and not just the Presidential race.  Judging by the allegations repeated ad nauseam , "my opponent is the scum of the earth and  needs to be banished to the outer reaches of the cosmos because  (s)he is not competent to be the ---FILL IN THE OFFICE-------------------------- !"  Actually, one of the nastiest political commercials I have witnessed was in a Senatorial campaign in our state in the early 1990's.

And the rhetoric of the candidates has amplified the disagreements within the electorate.  Sign pillaging and destruction unfortunately has a long history but I do not recall its being "legitimatized" before in this manner: an announcer at an area radio station in giving crime reports noted the vandalism from a local person's yard of signs for a particular candidate and then ad libbed, "who would want them ?"

Having earlier decided to write about this topic, I  was interested to learn today of the efforts of a 13 year old girl in Tennessee. Hannah-Kate McFadden became disenchanted with the toxicity of the campaign and drafted "The Candidate Pledge".  For more about her efforts, see  www.thecandidatepledge.com . Naive ? Maybe. Read the Pledge  before dismissing it. And a few politicians have signed, promising to adhere.  When I read her Pledge, I said, " . . . I approve of this message !"

     Satchel

   

"Purposeful Indolence" or "Being Lazy for Good Reason:"

   Have you ever had your words come back to you?  Something said to someone else and now they are using it in conversation with you !  So it happened this week when I was meeting with a client who is trying to maintain a semblance of balance in his life during a pandemic.  Professionally, he was already experiencing heightened anxiety and the 'new reality' of Covid is exacerbating  his  situation.

   A component of his coping strategy he said was to improve his capacity for  'purposeful indolence', and he chuckled, reminding me that several sessions back, I had used those words with him.  At the time, I was not suggesting sloth or laziness or what a colleague once labeled  sorriness. Rather I proposed that the Purposeful intent resembled something like "take a break for the purpose of  restoring energy, focus, clarity.

  By contrast, a long ago friend remembered his father's injunction: "I don't care what you do, son; but do something."  Rather like the cliche to the effect that " an idle mind is the devil's workshop.  Some might go so far as to claim that the old  Puritan work ethic of staying always busy is counter-productive for human well being.

   Suggestions I have heard for  being purposefully indolent include taking a walk, listening to soothing music, napping, just sitting still, reading one's Holy Book, meditation, physical workouts, 

yoga, going fishing,
loving a pet, making music , watching the sunrise . . . 

   (Certainly, there are among us those for whom such a notion can sound like 'privilege' . . . e.g. front-line health care workers, grocery store personnel, maintenance and housekeeping workers, as well as so many behind the scenes people  who 'keep things running'.)

   Recently a friend sent a picture of a resting dog and the caption "Sometimes the best therapist has fur and four legs."Along with our almost 18 year old Shit-zu, we have been enjoying feral Mamma Cat and her sole kitten who frequently dine on our deck.

  What have you found helpful in your experience of Purposeful Indolence ?

       Satchel