Boredom is a lighthouse
Yawning Apprentice by Munkácsy Mihály, 1869, (cropped)
It's quite challenging for me to feel boredom. Not because I don't want to, but because there is always something to do, something to explore. Despite that, I can recall couple of scenarios where boredom appears in me.
The first scenario that comes to my mind is something I would call institutionalized boredom. It's boredom which I experience while being tied down by social norms from what I want to do in the moment. Whether it happens during a lesson at school or during unexpected small talk - I don't think such boredom is beneficial in any way for me. I hesitate to actually call it boredom. It's rather just a reflection of the fact that I am not interested in something at that moment.
Another scenario is what makes topic of boredom interesting to me. It's situation, where nothing holds me back from doing what I would like to, but at the same time there is no action to take because I don't know what to do. The reason why I wanna take care about this type of boredom lies in abilities that such care requires.
I imagine boredom as something that allows me to see how I use my life from top view, because boredom breaks the flow of chained actions - that flow in which it is quite easy to lose my "why".
What else can I do when I don't know what to do? I start thinking about life itself and why I do what I do. And that's not always something pleasant to think about. That's why escape mechanisms occurs, like a sudden urge to meaninglessly consume information online - to again jump into flow of chained actions without the need of thinking about my "why".
With this in mind, I see abilities I need to strive for to make boredom tolerable. It's mainly ability to make harmony between my "why" and actions I do.
Boredom is like a lighthouse
that navigates me
when my actions
lead me to the cliffs.
I am new here and I would be happy if you join me on my new writing journey.