Literary Inspirations: John Wanamaker on Recreation

People who cannot find time for recreation are obliged sooner or later to find time for illness.

-John Wanamaker (19th century merchant)

In my steps to create a healthier lifestyle moving forward, I have to bear this in mind. I went to have a look at what the actual definition of recreation is (English teacher, hello!):

rec⋅re⋅a⋅tion 
/ˌrɛkriˈeɪʃən/ [rek-ree-ey-shuhn] –noun
1.
refreshment by means of some pastime, agreeable exercise, or the like.
2.
a pastime, diversion, exercise, or other resource affording relaxation and enjoyment.
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.

I picked a few important pieces out of this -

Refreshment: It is important that whatever I consider doing as recreation actually refreshes me in body and in spirit. A walk along the beach in brisk winds? Yes! A walk along an avenue of a crowded mall? No!

Exercise: A leading defence against the illness that has plagued me this year is exercise! I'm one of those people that loves getting out and enjoying time and activity in the sun and warmth. Wet cold winter? Not so much. I've been getting SB to show me how to use his home gym to do some exercises and I really need to make an effort to get out and walk about when it's sunny to get that cardio input. I'm already looking at getting a treadmill next winter if SB and I have moved in together (which looks like it may be on the cards).

Relaxation: Going out clubbing and partying hard with friends is all well and good in moderation, as is using my time at home to study and complete assignments. The issue here is that neither of them are particularly relaxing things to do. Moving forward, for the next month or so, I will make sure I'm reading at least one book for pleasure each week and that my weekends include one night that is relaxation, whether it's a night in with SB or a quiet chillout at a friends house.

Enjoyment: I recently changed my plans this weekend - I had made plans to see someone I knew from a long time ago. As I sat flicking through my plans for the weekend, it struck me. Why? Why would I go? This particular person and I never had a particularly strong friendship and although I'd be seeing other people that I did care more for, the effort seemed disproportionate to a friendship that really only lasted a season. It would frustrate me more to go than the enjoyment I would get from going. So I sent my apologies and instead will be relaxing (see point above LOL) with SB, spending some quality time together.

I will be making time for recreation, peaceful and wonderful moments in my life for the people that count - stuff this being sick bullshit LOL! How bout you, Scribblettes?