When I Struggle With “Doing Nothing,” I Remember This

The limbo between striving and cruising is what I want to avoid

Photo by on Pexels

I was preparing lunch when my mom-in-law caught my attention.

She was sitting on the sofa, just relaxing. She had offered to help and I declined. It was raining, so she was looking at the curtain of water. Then she stared at her fingers before looking at the rain again.

She looked like the perfect picture of calm — yet it was so foreign to me.

You see, my own mom never stops. This includes serving people and making sure no one is in want. If she sat down, which was rare, she’d be so tired that she’d fall asleep.

I grew up knowing speed so well that anything else was a refreshing sight to behold.

A distaste for relying on people

As a girl, I first knew my family wasn’t the norm when I visited my friends’ houses. Before, I’d assumed mothers were all young and pretty, and all houses were spick and span. Afterwards, I learned that people could live happily in different conditions.

Also, I thought everyone was swift, decisive, and self-reliant. “Faster, faster!” was my family’s soundtrack. I couldn’t be more wrong.