Being Bored is Okay

We seem to despise boredom. We fight it with phones and music and tv and games. We fill every second of our lives with entertainment, all so that we won't feel that we don't have anything to do. Parents buy their children ipads so that they won't get 'bored' on long road trips. Really? Give me a break. You know what I did on long family roadtrips? Looked out the window. I thought about stuff. I talked to my family.

Not to go all "back in my day" on everyone, but let's be serious here. Why are we so against being bored? It's a freakin' luxury to be bored. We should be happy to be bored. It means our needs are met, we aren't hungry, tired or dehydrated. It means our lives are so perfect that we don't have to be doing anything. It's amazing. It's time to think, ponder, reflect. But we'd rather turn on the tv and channel surf, or put on music so we don't have to interact with anybody else.

As adults, it's fine, do whatever, but for children? Kids should be bored. It forces them to think. To be creative. It forces them to make up their own games, their own stories, their own minds. If we stuff 'entertainment' down their throats every moment, they'll never have to think on their own. If they're constantly in contact with friends through a digital device, they'll never be forced to just be alone and think They won't have to deal with being bored, they'll just plug in and tune out. Let your kid look out the freakin window on road trips. Let them be bored because, hey, it's okay. Life is going to be boring and they should learn to do something other than sit in front of a screen.

I remember those long road trips, head against the window, staring at the landscape flying by, and just thinking. Creating stories in my head. Visualizing. Kids shouldn't need ipads to fight against boredom, they should be able to use their imagination, as corny as it sounds.

Anyways, that's my rant in defense of boredom. It gets a really bad rap and really, it's your own fault if you're bored. You've got a freakin' human brain in your head. If you're bored, you're not really using it.