Busy bodies

Hugh Mackay, Sydney's observer of our daily lives, writes:

"Busyness has become the new badge of honour. So why all this frenetic busyness - or, at least, the need to maintain the appearance of it? When did we decide that having a full plate was a virtue? Whatever happened to the idea that we need time to nurture our personal relationships, to think, or even not to think?

"It goes without saying that, up to a point, staying active is likely to keep you young. Mild levels of stress are apparently good for us. Some structure in the day gives us a necessary sense of purpose. But it's very easy to slip over the line that divides healthy activity from busyness for its own sake, and to assume that inactivity is somehow letting the side down.

"The ancient Latin poet Ovid may have got it right: "You who seek an end of love, love will yield to business: be busy and you will be safe." In other words, if you stay busy enough, you'll be protected from the demands of love. Plenty of wise heads have echoed that sentiment.

"Perhaps it is time to take stock and ask ourselves why all this rushing, all this pressure, all this busyness? Is it a sign of our inefficiency that we can't organise ourselves to spend fewer hours at work? Are we consumed by hubris, to the point of believing we are indispensable? Are we, perhaps, compensating for emotional emptiness at the centre of our lives; distracting ourselves from some cosmic loneliness? Or are we, as Ovid implies, merely trying to avoid the risks, the demands and the joys of love?"

If you're not too busy, you can read his whole commentary at http://smh.com.au/articles/2005/09/16/1126750124213.html