The Trap

If you are a novel writer, poet, or even a reader, if you are a filmmaker, musician, or just an avid consumer, you are probably asking yourself the same question I am asking myself. How do we find time for art and entertainment? Many of us, potentially all of us, lead busy work lives in an attempt to build for ourselves a life that we can manage on our own. This leads to hours upon hours of hard work and dedication to some form of career building. Having recently begun an artistically focused lifestyle, I look back on the past few months in wonder. In the midst of a consistently busy schedule, I not only set aside blogging, but also writing, and even reading.

This leads me to believe that many of us of who have busy schedules fall into a trap. The trap's name is habit.

When our lives take certain turns, we inevitably begin a routine. A work routine often consumes several hours out of the day, but leaves ample time for leisure activity. And it is in that time of the day that our habits kick in. And what are those habits? If our work schedule is, for instance, going to a demoralizing job for hours upon hours, coming home late, making dinner, and expecting to be up early the next day, then your leisure habits may inevitably involve sloth. There's so much recently done and so much left to do that you end up just lounging in front of a television screen, watching a program that brings you little inspiration, possibly even minimal entertainment. You tell yourself that you are too tired to do another work related thing and that although your writing is sitting on your dust collecting desk, you are entitled to some time to do absolutely nothing.

One day, you may realize that you wasted hours upon hours of writing and reading time in your busy schedule in favor of letting your mind and body lay about for a questionable amount of time. One thing we all learn is that life presents challenges. Challenges are meant to be overcome. So why is it that when a series of challenges appear in our schedules, we can be so quickly demoralized?

Why is it that a challenge is something we resist, rather than embrace? What would happen to one who treats a challenge not as a trap, but as a strength?