"To be bored is to turn down cold whatever life happens to be offering you at the moment. It is to cast a jaundiced eye at life in general including most of all your own life. You feel nothing is worth getting excited about because you are yourself not worth getting excited about." (F. Buechner "Listening to Your Life" p. 142)
As a parent I have often heard the words I'm bored. You could be in a house full of toys and be bored. And one of the worst parts of boredom is that it dulls the mind. Even though there are plenty of things to do, boredom kills motivation. That homework, housework, taking a walk, none of it happens.
While I might not communicate my boredom verbally, I know that I too get bored. The great religious word for it is acedia. It is one of the seven deadly sins. I thought sloth and gluttony had me, but really they follow the lead of acedia.
I know this because when I'm bored, I don't get much done. When I'm busy, I actually get a lot done. Those down times that come that most people would use to regroup or catch up, wind up creating a slothful Ed, or if there's food a glutton.
The only way I know out of boredom is to get busy. Too much time for me is a danger. And when I"m at my lowest, it gets easy to get bored by even things that usually get me going.
Blessings,
Ed
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