So Scott and I both woke up this morning feeling a little grouchy due to lack of sleep. (Ashley is 15 months now, so we should be getting sleep sometime in the next 15 years, right??) We decided it was time to clean the cushions on the couch, since it's been a while and they were starting to get pretty dingy.
I don't know if you've ever cleaned upholstery, but it's pretty hard work. I'm exhausted now that it's done, and Scott did 90% of the hard labor. We have a large sectional couch, so there was a LOT to be done. Even with the upholstery cleaner thingy (technical term- I promise...) that Scott has, it was still very labor-intensive.
As we were working together, Scott commented that even though he doesn't like cleaning the couch, doing the work with me was lifting his mood. I realized that I felt the same way.
This taught me two things. 1) Working hard doesn't have to be work, especially if you do it with someone. You can make just about any task a good experience if you choose to. (Also, this was just as bonding as a traditional date like going to dinner. Time together doesn't have to be fancy.)
2) Work is a good thing. A lot of times, we spend so much time scurrying to get things done that we miss out on the experiences we could be having. Physical labor has inherent mood-lifting effects due to hormones that are released, etc. You will always have a better mood after doing physical labor if you keep a positive attitude about it. Also, the sense of accomplishment from the work has very good mood-lifting effects.
It's important to let ourselves rest. It's also important not to overbook ourselves and cause ourselves stress. But it's also important not to focus so much on leisure that we become lazy. Laziness causes depression.
Just a thought. :)
