Blessed be this Bored Moment.

In a house recently purchased, heated to comfort, in clothes recently cleaned, with a sippy-cup full of organic cream and milk, while a pure-bread dog sleeps at the foot of a recently purchased couch, as a 55-inch TV displays the high definition cooking show, a child, healthy in both brain and lungs apparently, throws down her baby in what her parents can best describe as “boredom.” This child’s evening has not gone so well thus far, from getting picked up by a mom whom is understanding, healthy, beautiful, from a day care that is caring, loving, intimate, this child demanded stimulation due to having an abundance all day. It appears to no longer suffice merely haveing people listen to what ever jumbled sentence a 2-year-old’s mind can put together, but she requires stimulation as well. No longer does mere existence excite the family, but discipline and progression past fits of tantrums are the new standard. 

An evening of ups and downs the child seems easily agitated by things that were once new and exciting, now merely annoyances. Things that exist as weak distractors from an unsettled self. Things adults can relate to as what was once a gift, now just another thing. Boredom has a way of enticing us all and bringing us over to discontent. It has its treacherous fingers peer up our back, grab our minds, causing an overall dissatisfaction that any amount of money, drugs, or even sex as many try out, cannot seem to displace the discomfort associated with it’s trenches. 

No, this little girl, her attributes, the things she is constantly reminded to be thankful for and appreciate is showing us, her father included, what it means to lack appreciation in the moment, for appreciation entails stimulation, something she cannot get enough of right now. She has not yet had a soda, for that might stimulate her beyond this bored state, something that a parent may rely on to remedy the immediate dissatisfaction, something no one can judge for a whiny child is enough to wish an early bedtime for anyone. She has not yet tried to do anything, for her parents recommended paints or Play-Doh, both to get shot down without an attempt. Her parents have also tried sitting on the floor and playing or talking at her level to see what the matter is. Her dad knows, mom suspects, “she is just bored,” they confirm to one another. A blessing in disguise. 

Boredom is one of those unnecessary evils that for whatever reason exists and destroys what would otherwise have been a pleasant situation, a content life. I believe that much of what humans experience in contentment is what will be found in heaven, a removal of boredom, a tossing out of what us as humans developed through our constant need for more. If it wasn’t for boredom, I could sit and stare at a wall all day, simply lost in thought. If I never became tolerant of what was once exciting, I would still probably be dating a young, dramatic person for the stimulation there was exhilarating. No, I am married and the “drama” and “stimulation” a younger version may seek is no longer desired and I became bored of it all. I sought the contentment, the love, the comfort, the peace and satisfaction only a healthy partner brings about. 

This little girl is so comforted, has all the needs she could ever want, and yet here she sits, screaming, agitated, bored. She is lucky, no, blessed enough to experience this. This means she is OK and that her world is OK enough for her to be safe enough to seek more. Boredom can be a blessing in more ways than one. On one sense, boredom for a child allows for early recognition and coping, something overstimulated adults can’t seem to find. On the other hand, it seems appropriate enough to be allowed boredom. You know what isn’t boring, being so broke you don’t have heat, or having enough food, or a home, or two parents, or love, for the absence of any one of those things, a deviation from, “boring.” 

The next time boredom creeps into your mind like a black die filling a pure water container, make sure you catch the blessing for what it is. The allowance and safety of boredom remind us of what we do have, though we mistake it for what we don’t. 

Seeking something outside of self at all costs to a fragile self brought me to the brink of destruction and symptoms that were reinforced so long that they linger today. For the rest of the story, click HERE.