Embracing Unproductivity

The pandemic changed all of us in subtle and not-so-subtle ways. Many people found more time for hobbies and crafting since they were stuck at home more. For me, I found the opposite to be true. As the pandemic set in, loneliness and depression took hold, often rendering me unable to participate in hobbies I normally enjoyed, such as jewelry making, painting, and other crafts. The problem is, these hobbies help keep me sane during normal times, so not having something to do with my hands just made me feel worse.

 Of course, part of what makes crafting enjoyable is being able to do something with my hands. It’s eternally gratifying to sit down at a table and in 15 minutes or an hour or even several hours, to have a brand new ring or pair of earrings or have created a mobile from nothing but wire, feathers, and glass. In a world where much of our work is done online, being able to create something, anything, with just your hands creates a sense of accomplishment and well-being that finishing a document on a computer has a hard time fulfilling.

On the other hand, I also have to remember that sometimes, I don’t have to be productive. Some seasons are meant for waiting and growing, learning and listening. From the rose bush in the backyard to the wheat fields across Oklahoma, some seasons are for growing, some for replenishing the ground with nutrients, and some for producing the food we eat and the flowers that brighten up our yards.

The pandemic was a time of waiting and listening for me, I guess. That being said, I did find myself filling the void, so to speak, with other tasks and hobbies. At the beginning of the pandemic, I took up making masks for nurses and other healthcare workers, which gave me something to do with my hands. I cooked more. I picked up the ukulele and went back to playing guitar. While these weren’t my “typical” hobbies, they did make me feel like I was doing something.

Soon, I hope to get back to my crafting hobbies. But this period of waiting and growing has taught me that I don’t always have to be productive. We’re not always meant to be productive as human beings. Sometimes, just growing and learning from what I’m doing is enough. Sometimes, the art, the creation, without necessarily having an end product, is enough.