Writers need to write, especially total slackers like myself. And yet here we are discussing taking Sunday off every week.
Seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it?
The other day a young woman spoke to me excitedly about observing the Sabbath, someone who happens to be a professional bluegrass musician. She leads a busy life and is responsible for lots of things. For example, her band is about to go on tour in Europe and she takes it upon herself to schedule and arrange most everything for her band.
Before she started observing the Sabbath, she felt exhausted like she had no respite, like she always had to work, and that she was so busy, not working on Sunday was simply out of the question.
Talking to someone like her is inspiring. Talented people like this have an energy that’s contagious. I was honored she’d give me and my family the time of day. But she did more than that. She pulled up a seat, got to know my kids, my wife, and I.
Despite being so busy, she somehow found the time to meet and get to know us, people she may never see again. It’s like she understands something we don’t. Some key to productivity we’re missing.
And here I was feeling so slothful in her presence, thinking of all the weeks I did absolutely nothing of value. I do my full-time job, then I relax. And Sunday? Well, Sunday’s one of the only days of the week I have off, so of course I have to use it for writing (should inspiration strike).
((Waiting for inspiration to strike before writing is part of the problem.))
I was in the same headspace she was before she embraced observing the Sabbath: I was of the mind that sacrificing Sunday was simply out of the question.
But then she mentioned that you can use that day for planning and preparation. She talked about how she likes to make lists and organize on Sunday so she can hit the ground running on Monday.
Not only does that give her respite from her busy schedule, but the upcoming week is less frantic because she took a day to get organized and relax.
And then everything clicked.
If I can’t write on Sunday… that means… I’ll feel like I have to write more when it’s not Sunday. Get it?
One of my biggest hurdles to writing is getting organized because I take so many notes. And each week when Sunday rolls around, I’m forced to assess how much I’ve done and reflect on the week past.
Did I get further in my manuscripts? Did I write everyday?
If I’d been slothful through the entire week and also can’t write on Sunday, it suddenly makes me feel even worse and that guilt can be like rocket fuel for Monday and the coming week. It makes me want to get organized, prepared. It makes me want to get ready and hit the ground running, just as she said.
Not only is this good for my spiritual journey (see the book of Exodus), it also just might be exactly what I needed.
Nick Enlowe 