Paying attention to boredom is unbelievably interesting. ~Jon Kabat-Zinn
“When you pay attention to boredom, it gets unbelievably interesting.” ~Jon Kabat-Zinn
With the spring season approaching, I typically think about plans for the gardens and what we may want to plant here at Hope Grows. Mapping out the space and thinking about the kinds of vegetables, the different flowers that bring so much beauty to the grounds and trying a new herb this year all thoughts that begin to race through my mind. It is about now when I start my walk around the gardens in a much different way. In the winter, I walked around reveling in the dormancy and the transformation of going inward and gaining peace from the quiet. The walk into the spring season is busier, evaluating what needs attention from the long winter, focusing on the unusual weather patterns this winter, and taking note of the warmer than normal temperatures.
Thinking about the gardens poses a different challenge this season: early budding, plants surfacing earlier than normal, and the imminent threat of cold temperatures and snow. More attention and tenderness will be needed and I ask myself about this word called boredom. How does that fit into this busy mind of planning for the new gardening season as I watch the snowdrops poke their head out of the earth to say hello?
This quote by Jon Kabat-Zinn appears to masquerade itself as a façade of anything that could possibly become attainable. But I chose to use this word, masquerade, subconsciously if I may add, for a reason. I ask myself, how can I mindfully go about doing nothing? Is boredom something that can we can force? I begin to think about caregivers and how hard it must be to let go of their busy when there appears to be no time in the day to become mindful about doing nothing. I believe in the notion that paying attention to boredom can be rewarding. It is calming and beneficial to your health. When doing nothing, the process helps the brain to reset and helps with a refocus on setting priorities.
I challenge you this spring to use snippets of your time to be bored. I know I will engage in boredom and I would love to hear back from you how it worked for you and what you found interesting. Start small, engage in a couple of minutes each day to just day dream into nature, connect your senses and empower yourself. Jon Kabat-Zinn is correct, it does get unbelievably interesting.