Lightly Child. Lightly.

Posted on by Live & Learn

We are no longer achieving an acceptable level of whimsy. In even the smallest corners of daily life, we are asked to abandon delicious inefficiencies — the archaic flights of fancy, the capricious nonsense — in favor of a totalizing commitment to the false idols of logic, regularity and efficacy… It is time, in a disorganized and utterly decentralized way, to fight back…let’s stop blasting holes in mountainsides — just let the damn road have a few switchbacks.

Our society is hooked on efficiency. People work to optimize their lives, multitasking every possible activity, looking to force every possible minute out of the day to be productive, turning hobbies into “side hustles” — and from this they suffer. That much, many seem to know. But do they realize how they also suffer from standardized plurals, from oh-so-easy math and from the abandonment of the little joys of an existence filled with unnecessary journeys down the side paths of life? “Was tennis not the same game it had been then?” the writer Jean Stafford asked in 1952. “Why did it seem, today, so much faster?” There is a joy in slowness and inefficiency, in lazily lofting the ball over the net rather than blasting it down the sideline.

That’s why pastimes and lifestyles that eschew more efficient options are resurgent. “Luddite” teens reject smartphones and Google Calendar invites. Vinyl record sales are exploding, the act of placing a disc upon a turntable preferred to the ease of tapping Play on a music streaming service’s meticulously engineered app interface. Renewed interest in film photography is so acute that some retailers are hiding rolls of film behind the counter to avoid theft; not so memory cards for digital cameras.

There is a whimsy in those lifestyle choices and hobbies, a whimsy in doing things the roundabout way. It is simple enough to argue that the most direct path is the best one, but humanity doesn’t really work like that. As a species, we learn by doing — and often enough, we find joy in it. Taking the time to master a skill, to understand a process or to have a conversation — even if it isn’t quite as fast — is consistently more rewarding than having something simply done for you. Efficiency-focused single-mindedness might make things faster, but it is a thief of life’s joys.

If the point of all this — state, trade, industry, culture, society writ large — is well-being and joy, making lives better, then, as often as may be, it should work on a human scale, embracing the winding trails of life over the direct highway bulldozed through the mountainside. That’s not to say there is no place for efficiency, but to govern people, who are by nature not particularly efficient, with too heavy a bias toward simply getting things done is doubtless a well-intentioned mistake. Our government should be as strange as we are, more or less…

Of course, this isn’t likely. The nature of business and government is to prize efficiency, to value cost saving and corner cutting and results-focused thinking (or whatever the consultants call it). But even outside of the sheer joy of taking a moment longer to perform a task — to take a longer trip home because you’d rather see the sun set over the bridge, to set the vinyl record carefully on the turntable instead, to visit your local takeout place and chat with the cashier in lieu of punching an order for 47 dumplings into an app — there is a beauty and (dare I say it) usefulness to inefficiency…

So next time I want some takeout, I’ll walk two furlongs and seven chains to the local Indian joint, place my order with the cashier directly, be annoyed that I can’t pay in a de-decimalized currency, and then sit and wait for an hour while they prioritize the Grubhub app-based orders over mine.

— Parker Richards, from “Down With Efficiency! (When We Get Around to It.)” (NY Times, October 5, 2023)

  • Post Title & Inspiration: Aldous Huxley: “It’s dark because you are trying too hard. Lightly child, lightly. Learn to do everything lightly. Yes, feel lightly even though you’re feeling deeply. Just lightly let things happen and lightly cope with them.

36 thoughts on “Lightly Child. Lightly.”

  1. I love how your Aldous Huxley quote is so beautifully aligned wiht this passage. How its rhythm written all those years ago stream under Richards’ words giving them depth and relevance today.

    And I love the passage. Driving Irish roads I have not yet eschewed Google Maps which seems to work well for me as I am still extremely adept at getting lost, a part of travelling I love! 🙂

  3. We absolutely agree. We don’t need to become better, more efficient, faster. We hope that the age of acceleration asking for efficiency is coming to an end. We sympathise with the Luddite Teens, although we haven’t met even one of them yet.
    Thanks for sharing the Parker Richards article
    The Fab Four of Cley
    🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

  4. This is so validating. We shouldn’t wait for a reality check before choosing the meandering route over the fastest. 

  5. Yay, Luddites! And maybe go the public library and *waste* an hour browsing / borrowing (or go to a college library and *waste* THREE)! Husband would say, “Hang your wash on the line” like he does, but nowadays most everyone would first have to go get / set up a line!

  6. Being a woman of a certain age, I love these thoughts. And I have begun to revel in those delicious little inefficiencies, taking the winding road vs. the freeway, and taking the long way home to see the sunset from where I know it’ll be perfect.
    Great post!

  8. I think most of the time I have one foot on Whimsy Tracks, and the other foot on Reality Tracks. And the only way to balance this act is to only have one foot down at the time.
    Grounded has come to mean something new recently.
    I’m taking a long weekend off to put both feet in Whimsy. It’ll be a tough act Monday morning jumping on the east Australian current, ref. Nemo.
    But I’ll come back strong.

    Thank you for this lovely share, Mr.!

          1. The scene where Marlin, Nemo’s father, and Dori hop on the East Australian Current. Most thrilling scene ever. Exactly the way a Monday morning feels jumping into work from Whimsy. Then there’s the scene where they get off. That’s Friday end of day. The East Australian Current exists in reality. It’s like the express lane on the highway.

  9. An interesting approach to whimsy. Love this perspective … and also am drawn to use a different adjective. Whimsy seems too Peter Pan and unreal.
    The real is not necessarily to be condemned, but how others present it definitely is.
    When we turn to our whimsy we reject the realities of life. There is such a wealth of experience between the two to observe and absorb.
    I do agree that bringing in joy and lessening our focus in efficiency creates a more balanced way of being.
    Thanks DK. An interesting and stimulating share ❣️

  10. Ok – to all those who have laughed at my spirit animal the sloth; those who heave long sighs at the reality that I am a Luddite – I say ‘ha!’…we spend a lifetime working as quickly and efficiently as possible, some marvel at the efficiencies that can be tapped through A.I., I see people typing feverishly on their smartphones, etc..It’s kinda important to embrace one’s humanity and care for it – and that takes a little time.

  12. See this with a delay. I love the word whimsical… got to know it in England – a great place for whimsy!
    Just for you, Dave, I looked it up, and I think I have found some good examples:
    *Whether you’re hoping to decorate a cake, jazz up a salad, adorn a cocktail, or simply enjoy a snack from nature, edible flowers can add a touch of whimsy and natural beauty to your diet.*
    That’s just one example, but I know exactly what it means w/o being able to explain it.
    Great interpretation of Huxley’s quote you like so much!
    (and dare I say: do don’t come across as a whimsical person)
    Happy Sunday to you. We’re enjoying lunch outside the apartment on our little patio. Parasols out, bees humming around last blooms. A heavenly peace, not too hot, nice company (HH), a summer meal, an air of whimsy….

  13. I take time to connect…it is a luxury… finds my soul…one has to reach in to reach out…always enriching…

    1. “feeds my soul”, not finds my soul but when I think about it, both happen – finds turns to feeds…///

  14. trying to get this to show up: “feeds my soul”, not finds my soul but when I think about it, both happen – finds turns to feeds…///

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