Where have the Sundays gone? Writing my own Blue Laws

A few days ago, I suddenly found myself longing for the Sundays of my youth. When I was growing up, Sunday was a day for lounging around, for clipping coupons and reading comic strips. We received The Martinsville Bulletin and/or The Roanoke Times. Ever since I was old enough to read and turn the pages of the newspaper, I looked forward to the Sunday comic section: Peanuts, The Far Side, For Better or For Worse, Doonesbury, Cathy, Dilbert. These were some of the comics I remember fondly. (I was less excited about the coupons.) Maybe my memories of Sundays are enhanced by the leisure that typically accompanies childhood years. Or, maybe there was something else that contributed to the leisurely quality of the Sundays that I remember.

The Blue Laws, which restricted alcohol and retail sales on Sunday, also accompanied my childhood years in Virginia. The origins of these laws trace back to the early 1600s, when the citizens of Jamestown were required to observe a holy day of rest on Sunday. The first step towards repealing these laws was taken thirty-five years ago on January 15, 1974. A transitional period ensued, as each county or city was given authority to decide independently whether to observe the laws. Finally, in 1988, a group of businessmen initiated a case that eventually led to the end of the Blue Laws in Virginia. Although I do not feel these laws have a place in our secular American society, one by-product of them was that people seemed to make more time for each other on Sundays. Sundays moved at a slower pace.

In the life that I lead today, I often feel that all the days are the same. As an artist and musipreneur in the US, I feel my challenge is to maintain a portfolio of IGOs, my term for “income-generating opportunities”. This portfolio ideally enables me to draw in sufficient amounts of income, while ensuring that I also have time and energy to practice and create. I am no stranger to faith, commitment, and discipline. So, every day I feel responsible for doing some kind of work towards reaching my goals.

I found the courage to make a promise to my dreams. I promised them that I would do everything in my power to bring them to life. I organized my time in order to make room for their pursuit. At first, I carved out minutes for my art on a daily basis, then hours, days, weeks, months, until I was fully devoted to being an artist and understanding what that means for me and my life. For every unit of leisure that I gave up in order to pursue these dreams, there was something I gained in return and I was one step closer to realizing them.

Enter another law: The Law of Diminishing Returns. Some of you might disagree with the application of this principle to an arena other than agriculture, for which it was originally devised. Still, I think this path is worth exploring, if only as an exercise. This economic principle suggests that there is an optimal amount of investment in a particular scenario. In this case, we’ll apply this notion to the investment of time. The optimal point will be different for every person, based on his or her personal circumstances. The idea is that if you invest less time than this optimal amount, you are missing out on some gains. You are likely to gain a lot from an hour more of study as a novice. An additional hour of study as an expert will contribute to your mastery of the subject. You will be giving up something to get something that is of value to you.

Yet, if you invest more than this optimal amount of time, you might not be gaining anything more. In fact, you might discover that you are losing something. The additional time you spend may well be a detriment to achieving your dreams. Finding the optimal solution is a matter of trial and error.

So, it has occurred to me that, somewhere along the way, I lost sight of the Sundays. Yet, Sundays aren’t really what I’m after. What I’m after is the feeling that comes with a moment of rest. I’m not talking about planning time for meditating or doing yoga or praying or going for a run or reading a book. I’m talking about having some time for doing absolutely nothing and being open to anything the universe offers me in that moment. I want to have that luxury – again.

This year I’m going to find that moment. Maybe I’ll even subscribe to the Sunday issue of the Los Angeles Times and read the comics every week.

In any case, I’m going to write my own “blue laws”.

As always, I’m open to your thoughts and personal experiences as they relate to this post, so please feel free to comment below.