My tasks for the next three weeks had already been laid out on my calendar. And I realized that I could keep my work (at least the independent, academic kind) out of my Sundays. As a living, breathing human being, rest is necessary, and doing enjoyable things once in a while is actually healthy.
Ah yes, enjoyable activities. This brings to mind our class discussion last year on Positive Psychology. There is a distinction between pleasurable and enjoyable activities. More often than not, the former brings about instant rewards that have no lasting impact on the person. The latter involves growth and learning, and actually contribute to one's well-being. Put that way, I guess doing enjoyable activities while resting isn't as bad as I make it out to be. It's definitely a lot better than the (too many) hours I've wasted on Facebook and Twitter, and playing (the ridiculously addictive) Bejeweled.
Since I've been talking about rest and slowing down, here's a nice read on starting your day slowly (just pardon the typos, grammar Nazis).
Now I shift my topic completely to something that often bothers me about our country: our lack of collective self-esteem. I ended my last entry (which was much too long ago) mentioning this in passing, but a recent class discussion has made me reflect on it further. Interestingly, that discussion was triggered by a classmate's mention of talangka mentality. My professor, being an active advocate of Sikolohiyang Pilipino was quick to denounce the use of such a term. According to her, this stereotype is damaging to the Filipino psyche (as most stereotypes are) and is in fact a misnomer. If you look at a basket of crabs, they will appear to be pushing others down in order to get up. But in reality, they are helping each other up, as eventually none of the crabs will be left behind. The analogy was a great way to shatter that stereotype. But there are many more Filipino stereotypes that need to be shattered. The sad thing is that we are the ones responsible our own culture's propagation of such negative attitudes and behaviors. With this, we fail to realize the greatness that we are capable of, and settle for what we think we deserve.
Perhaps that last sentence goes for your pursuit of your own dreams too, whatever they may be. (I just might be speaking to myself, more than anyone else. I think it's time to work on that application.)
