Thursday, October 29, 2009
Work brings dignity
John Long
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- Roman indulgences
- On timeless advice, etc.
- A run-in with French health care
From the RoundTable blog
"Hey, Mike. How's your semester going?" I asked a friend one morning.
"Fine. Busy, but that's good and bad."
"Same here, but I've always said I'd rather be busy than bored."
"Me too. See you later!" Mike and I continued on in opposite directions across campus. Our passing conversation was only a few seconds, but it got me thinking about the nature of work. Why is it, I wondered, that I am happier when I've got more than enough to do? Why am I antsy when I have too much leisure time? What is it about work, too often considered a curse, that satisfies the soul in ways nothing else can?
I've reached the conclusion that, especially for men, work defines us. Meet a man, and usually you ask his name, and then follow it up with "what do you do?" It's not far from asking, "Who are you? What reason do you have for existence? What do you contribute to the world?"
I enjoy working. I'm not a workaholic (really!), but it's gratifying to put in a productive day on the job. Of course, my particular workdays, spent in a museum or a classroom, in front of a computer or behind a lectern, many men would find tedious beyond endurance. Sometimes even I long to do real labor and break an honest sweat. But my various jobs (counting writing this column, I have four) suit me and give structure to my life. And that's the way it should be.
Even on days off, I can't just do nothing for very long. I have to have some task to accomplish, even if (especially if) it's fathering my kids. I feel lost without the structure of a to-do list.
I've also been thinking about work as I hear about the growing numbers of unemployed. The financial stress must be awful, but I would also hate the emptiness of the days. I've known men (and a few women) who have lost a job and crumpled under the blow. Talk about identity theft -- it was as if they'd forgotten their own names. Having tasks to accomplish was the essence of their identity, and until something filled that void they seemed to be almost wandering through life.
Work is that important. The dignity it brings is more important than the paycheck it produces. And yet a lot of people seem content to be idle.
Let me save some folks the trouble of sending me indignant e-mail. I am well aware that some people can't work. In the current economy, jobs are hard to find. Other people have physical or mental disabilities that keep them out of the workforce. A lot of folks are retired, or stay-at-home parents like my wife (who works harder than I do). I'm not talking about any of these people.
But we all know there are some others who abuse the system, who contentedly stay unemployed when they certainly could do something if they tried, which they don't. I remember talking to a grocery store manager years ago. She laughed as she told me about giving an application to a lady to fill out. When she turned it in, the manager told the applicant that the store was hiring and would call her soon. "Give me back that application!" she yelped, and ran out of the store with it. She didn't want a job. She only wanted to say that she was looking for one. More sad than funny, I thought. I can't imagine the vacuum a lack of work would create.
Actually, I can. After college I was barely employed for a while. I had some part-time work but plenty of days with nothing to accomplish, no time clock, no responsibility. It drove me crazy. I found some unpaid diversions and volunteer work and eventually I was able to get better employment. But I've never forgotten the uncomfortable feeling of waking up with no particular reason to do so.
So I encourage anyone who is out of work right now not to let unemployment define you the way work usually does. Find something to do. The work I'm talking about isn't necessarily paid employment -- it's anything productive that brings purpose to your waking hours. Consider some unpaid volunteer service. Or don't be too proud to take a job beneath your skill level. Do something, do it well and take pride in it. Because work is too important and too fulfilling to let many days go by without it.
Long, director of the Salem Museum and a history teacher at Roanoke College, is a Roanoke Times columnist.
