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What if I ask you to gaze out of the window, daydream and do absolutely nothing at all? Would you do it?
The Italians love food both for their stomach and for their soul. Their concept for piddling around is known as ‘ La Dolce Far Niente’, which means sweetness of doing nothing.
On a Friday evening if I don’t have any plans with my friends or if I don’t have anyone to accompany me to a bar for couple of drinks I consider my self socially aloof. I punish myself for being lonely, idle and useless. Also end up thinking about everyone from neighbors to mailman whom I see all dressed up for events and say to myself, ‘ I am old, I don’t have weekend plans anymore and I am so bored, what should I do?’ This might happen to many, who by chance skip a plan or decides to spend the weekend by themselves.
The idea of doing nothing might seem dreadful in the beginning but it actually is an event in itself. Initially you might shy away from doing nothing by watching Tv, scanning your smartphones, gossiping about people on phone calls simply because the thought of solitude is scary and you are not sure what you will confront. Moreover you are afraid that your inner confrontation would be worse than you thought. Well its understandable but in order to lead a purposeful life people have to fully understand who they are.
In order to start doing nothing you must first stop doing everything. Stop checking your emails, text messages; phone calls even try to avoid looking at the wall clock and just breath. I am not asking you to be lazy in fact it would be the most productive thing you will do for yourself. Research has shown doing nothing can develop your problem solving ability and makes you more creative. This is simply an exercise of emptying your super occupied mind and filling it with more positive, optimistic and meaningful thoughts.
Amongst everybody almost all suffer from some sort of guilt or regret. Though subconsciously but it still slows down your growth by all means. So when you decide to sit under a tree, eat your favorite cuisine and listen to the chirping of the birds, your mind will tell you that whatever you did or happened to you was in the past or was not your fault or you must forgive and forget. These commands would let go your guilt, which was a hindrance in your progress. Similarly, resting more by taking frequent naps, cheating on your routine, finding your inner artists and doing things unexpected of you will eventually help you find emotional stability and mindfulness.
Thus under the Tuscan sun, relishing your spaghetti and sipping your favorite wine is “La Dolce Far Niente”. Why don’t we learn this art from the Italians and spend some time actually doing nothing.
