The True Meaning of Leisure, and How it Can Help Writers

The definition of the word leisure has been bastardized to simply mean any time when one is not working. But the word used to refer specifically to the relaxation time spent after you were done performing all your duties.

For example, someone who’s finished all their chores and responsibilities has earned the right to be leisurely for the rest of the day. One who has earned retirement after working a long and hard career has truly earned a life of leisure. “Leisure suits” were designed to be worn around the house after you’ve changed out of your business attire at the end of a long workday.

So, if someone is supposed to mow the lawn and do the dishes, but is shirking off their duties in order to, say, watch a football game instead, that, by definition, is not a leisurely activity.

People these days have it backwards: They think they need to go on vacation as a “holistic approach” in order to “detox” (ie: “escape” from the stress of work). But in actuality, they’ve worked hard and earned that vacation.

Right now, I have the duty to edit a manuscript and deliver it on time. If I set a concrete goal for the day and complete that goal, I’ve earned my leisure. If I don’t bother touching the manuscript and decide to mess around instead, that’s called procrastination. And never the ‘twain shall meet.

I’m happy to report I’m a little over one-third of the way through the document, on course to completing this project far ahead of schedule.

You see, when you’ve earned your relaxation time, it feels good–Much better than it would have had you been shirking your duties. The true meaning of the word leisure helps remind myself that free time was always meant to be a reward, something that should be earned in order to be deserved.

BONUS: Speaking of holistic approaches, if you do an image search on “relaxation”, you’ll find lots of pretentious yoga pics. I like to ask myself if these people are meditating for leisure, or if it’s to escape the stress in their lives. One thing’s for sure, the philosophy of the caduceus has taken over western culture. It’s trendy.