Being busy, Living life?

I’ve barely been a make-believe columnist for a week, and already I missed a make-believe-deadline. My first one, at that. Sure, I have a million good excuses (reasons! Reasons!) – My son has been very ill, I just started a new role at work, its exam time at University, and the list goes on and on. Then again, real columnists also have excuses (ok, ok, reasons). Real columnist must also have a life (if you can call what I’ve been leading lately, a “life”).


I wonder what happens to real columnist if/when they miss a deadline. I suppose the editor quickly pulls out a backup filler for the column and the publication moves forward on time, the readers barely giving the small switch a second thought. I’ve seen that before, as the reader. What I’m curious about is behind the scenes: does the columnist get fined? Does he/she need to submit the column regardless, a day later (like I am doing here) or can he/she skip a week and just hand in the next column, for the next week. Does the contract state a certain number of times that this is allowed to happen before a pink slip is handed? Interesting.

Interesting, but not really the main topic for today’s column. Today I’m thinking of “life getting in the way”. In the way of living, that is. How many of us go about our routine: wake up, get everyone/everything ready for work/school, go to work, run errands that supposedly keep the world going round (groceries, bank, doctor, gas…) run back home, get everyone/everything ready for bed, sleep (if we’re lucky) – and start all over again…?

How many of us take the time to interweave something *fun* into this routine. Something passionate? And if we do – how much time do we dedicate to this activity…? Come on, be honest with yourself – give me numbers, percentages. How much (percent) of your life do you dedicate to what you love doing, compared to the time you dedicate to what you need (or think you need) to be doing?

It’s an age old question that has been asked a million times by a million people in a million languages. And yet, the amount of people that have a satisfactory (or what I think is a satisfactory) answer is miniscule.

I have also asked myself these questions time and time again. Usually, I just don’t have time to even properly think of an answer, “I’m just too busy”. Then, last week, something made me… stop. My sister in law, a young-beautiful-got-everything-going-for-her mom, was diagnosed with breast cancer. Suddenly, everything that was so urgent and important in life has taken second place to her health. To her life.

When I heard the news, I gasped and I stopped, but only for a minute or two. After all, I had urgent things to take care of – my son was sick, I have a new role at work, its exam time at the University. A column to write. Nevertheless, in the quiet spaces between the noises, I can hear the nagging question that much clearer now... “How much time to I dedicate to… really… living?”