Of Course You're Busy

A friend remarked the other day that everyone is busy these days; there's no point in even saying it. And it's true of most people outside an institution—they've got a lot to do.

But I think it's at least partly a perception thing. My dad, for instance. Once I was watching him watering his garden. He was filling up a large cooking pot at an outside tap (my parents have their own way of doing things) and then walking around a high concrete patio and down a slope to his garden. It was a large garden, and he was doing this over and over again.

I watched him, analyzing the situation like a management consultant. "Why don't you get a hose," I said, "and attach it to the tap, run it around the patio, and just water the garden that way?"

"I don't have time," he snapped, "to buy a hose."

I had a fact to offer in the debate that I believed was a strong counterargument. "Dad," I said, "you're retired. I think you have time to buy a hose."

So there you are. He wasn't really as busy as he thought he was; he just needed to slow down and take stock of the situation. Maybe we all should? Just sayin'.