There is something imprinted inside us that demands our continued growth.
Churchill is often regarded as one of the United Kingdom’s greatest leaders, a man of remarkable capability and insight. So it may seem odd that he took up painting during a career low point after World War I before then rising to lead his nation during its darkest years of World War II. He understood something of what it takes to renew oneself.
“The tired parts of the mind can be rested and strengthened, not merely by rest, but by using other parts. It is not enough merely to switch off the lights which play upon the main and ordinary field of interest; a new field of interest must be illuminated,” he advised.
Churchill’s point here is affirmed by modern researchers. We now know that learning and mental challenges are to the brain what exercise is to the body. They keep this essential organ in shape, ready to perform its duties and take on additional responsibilities.
“To be really happy and really safe, one ought to have at least two or three hobbies, and they must all be real,” wrote Churchill.
There is something critical about engaging the body with an inspired mind. Doing so was routine in previous generations before screens devoured our creativity and leisure hours.
It can be easy to dismiss the value of something with a name that sounds so … trivial.
Modern people have lost many of these common pursuits and pastimes. We work until we are exhausted, and then watch screens to relax. This is especially the case for the younger generations.
“Hobbies fall between the productivity-catharsis divide. Woodworking, embroidery, collecting, crafting, fishing, or any other is not productive like work is. Work is done for what it accomplishes. Leisure activities bring relaxation. Both have an alternative goal. A hobby is done for itself,” he writes.
And, I would argue, a hobby is done for the spirit. It is a chance for something unbridled and creative to emerge from your heart and leave its mark in this world. Such pursuits renew us.
