It was a bright, sunny Sunday with a temperature of just perfect. I intended to go to the park with several other families in the morning, come home for lunch, and do household chores throughout the afternoon. But something better happened.
We got to the park around 10am. Birds chirping, the cheers of children playing, weather so perfect it felt surreal. Most of the families we were with left around 12:30pm. My wife, 4-month-old daughter and I, along with a friend plus her daughter and mother, couldn’t resist staying in the park on such a beautiful day.
Leaving such a lovely setting, on such a gorgeous day, to do some household chores, seemed like wasting an opportunity. Sitting around chatting, eating snacks, drinking iced tea (making jokes about it being whiskey), and doing nothing in particular while enjoying the sunshine was a much better idea. So, going with the flow of Mother Nature, we stayed until a late afternoon chill set in.
My life is by no means perfect. I have plenty of shit that needs to be dealt with and lived with, but in this moment none of that mattered. This was a moment where life was lived.
This was a non-productive day1, yet by no means a time-wasting day. It was a donut day, in that I got zero chores done (and because I had a salted caramel doughnut2). Some days, if not every day, are best left to ‘life’ to decide what should happen. This was a day I did that, and this day seemed to pan out just the way I needed: refreshing and rejuvenating.
Did you enjoy this article? Help others enjoy it too by liking, restacking, sharing or leaving a comment.
Cover image: Photo by me in Hyde Park, Perth, Western Australia.
My friend Aden Date shared this idea: Non-productive is not the same as unproductive. It’s deliberately taking a break from being productive, by doing something playful or restful, such that you can be more productive later. See Aden’s post about it on LinkedIn.
I am deliberately using different spellings, I love doughnuts too much to blaspheme their good name by directly using them to make a point about productivity. Consider it a spelling god with a capital G type thing...