Being a normal person is okay

Experiences 2 Minutes

Today is marking one month since the corona lockdown has started, so I judged that it is time to write about my quarantine experience after every blogger I know has done it.

Since the first days when everyone was experiencing introvert’s life, everybody – especially celebrities – started challenges: « Guys, Let’s make a challenge together, let’s read 100 books, let’s write 100 posts, let’s workout every day, let’s meditate, let’s learn a new language, let’s start new projects… ». 
I was like: Yeah, this is the perfect time to do all of this, nature gave me this chance so I won’t miss that opportunity.

Then, I scheduled my next day: Wake up early, workout, read, write, learn Spanish, start my project.

The Next day: I woke up early, and… I skipped the rest of the schedule.
Same thing the day after, same thing the week after. All what I was doing is: Netflix, online games, and feeling the guilty…

Feeling guilty for wasting my time, feeling guilty for losing my muscle’s mass, feeling guilty for not writing a single post on my blog and feeling guilty when Duolingo send a notification to remind me that it’s time to go back study Spanish. In fact, I wasn’t even enjoying movies, TV shows and online games, and that’s because of guilty.

Until 3 days ago, when I decided to stop thinking about this “Let’s make a challenge together” thing. I decided that it is okay to chill, it is okay to stay on bed all time with the same hoodie all day.

And tomorrow, the magic happened!
Okay, I woke up in the afternoon, but… I started reading « Eat, Pray, Love » by Elizabeth Gilbert, which is a great book even for men. I wrote this post, so I’m feeling like any other blogger now. And at night, I watched ‘The Platform’ and I really enjoyed it.
That day had the perfect equilibrium, two productive things versus two non-productive things, and I was in peace for the first time since day one of the lockdown.

When I decided to put down that “being productive” weight off my shoulders, I became a productive person. Maybe tomorrow I will start home workout or I return to “aprender español” , but I’m telling myself:

You’re not forced to do it; being a normal person is okay.

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Published by Zoheir

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49 thoughts on “Being a normal person is okay”

  1. Short but very effective article! Highly worthy article.
    Indeed, being normal is fine!
    I also love your writing style and use of words.
    I want to remain updated with your work, so I have followed you! 🙂

    Liked by 7 people

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    1. Too much compliments in a single comment 😋, I really appreciate that, and I’m happy that you liked the post.

      I also like the stuff you write, so I followed to stay tuned 😊

      Liked by 2 people

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      1. I complimented your article because it provided great value to me, as a reader.
        Thank you for going through my site! I appreciate your time and efforts!
        I cannot wait to read your future articles!

        Liked by 1 person

  3. Loved this. Honestly, people are so concerned about being productive and not wasting a minute watching TV or just doing nothing. This just puts pressure on everybody and takes away the fun and motivation to do what needs to be done. The way I see it, time spent enjoying yourself whether it’s in the form of being a couch potato and binge watching your favourite TV show or reading a book is time well spent. If it brings you joy or peace then your time spent was productive.
    Lovely post!

    Liked by 6 people

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    1. To answer your question « who is normal? »…
      A normal person is a person who procrastinate. A normal person is a person who chose to do unproductive things instead of productive ones. Our brain is designed that way, he prefers easy things like Netflix & Chill.

      So if your lockdown day is unproductive, in biology norms you are “a normal person”.

      Thank you so much for this comment, hope I answered to your question.
      And Nice to meet you too 😊

      Liked by 1 person

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      1. lol I was implying that I doubt anyone is ‘normal’, we only have our own norms … and I’m adverse to netflix, so you are most welcome to zone out to my share 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

  8. Thank you for telling it like it is! My children and I have spent the past 3 weeks feeling confused and bewildered when school finished so abruptly (and so did my side-hustle dog walking job). We did manage to paint our living room and part of the dining room before we ran out of paint, so I take that as a big achievement. This week I started the new school term by trying to replicate a school day at home. I even downloaded a school-bell app to my phone for break times! We did it on Monday and my daughters worked hard. We haven’t done it since. Instead we joined Disney+ and they are enjoying their new obsession: Descendants!

    Liked by 4 people

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    1. Thanks for sharing your experience.

      A day you paint, a day you study and the other day you watch Descendants. Once they finish Descendants they may go back to study or when you buy some paint you will finish the remaining part of the dining room. Or maybe you’ll find a new activity tomorrow .
      It’s all fine as long as you enjoy what you do.

      Liked by 2 people

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  9. Great post! Many of us are experiencing this unproductivity. Seems like the perfect time to be productive, but we are in the midst of a pandemic. Plus, for me, this is the first time I’ve had any amount of time to just be lazy and chill. I decided to let go of the guilt of it two nights ago and now I’m slowly beginning to be more productive, like you. I actually exercised yesterday!!

    Liked by 3 people

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  12. As you have found out, Zoheir, there is a certain skill in doing nothing. And, as Pascal tells us, all of men’s (but not women’s) unhappiness comes from one thing: not knowing how to stay at rest in their (bed)rooms. Dolce far niente, but that is Italian. See you on duolingo!

    Liked by 3 people

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    1. The proverb “dolce far niente” or “the sweetness of doing nothing” I just recently discovered it and by surprise I discovered it in the book that I mentioned in this post.
      With what you said in your comment, you added value to the post 😊. Thanks

      Liked by 1 person

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  13. I hate all this having to be productive bit. Always activity, activity, activity. Justifying your presence in this world. It is the way society is now, sadly. How about let’s be quiet for a while, in this mad mad world. Relax. Throw off our shoes. Try to be comfortable. It’s not a contest. We all get through in whatever manber we can. Great post here.

    Liked by 3 people

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    2. “Justifying your presence in this world” is a fantastic line. Especially now when people are dying in great numbers the living people are seemingly being required to double down and prove ourselves worthy of being here.😐

      Liked by 3 people

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  15. The more pressure we out upon ourselves the more resistance we create to what we want to be or do. As you saw yourself letting go of it created productivity.
    Sitting in front of a tv all day though day after day can create a zoning out. Sometimes we need that as long as that doesn’t become our normal.
    Thanks!

    Liked by 3 people

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  16. I think left to our own devices, most of us wouldn’t have started hounding ourselves to get busy, be productive, and Make Good Use of Our (Newly Found) Time. I expect that but for all the voices online & in social media, I would likely have thought, “I better lay low and wait this horrible thing out” and required little to nothing more of myself .

    Liked by 2 people

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  18. Many, many years ahead for you both. I had Pharaoh, a GSD, when he was a puppy in 2003. This was in Devon, England. This blog is a tribute to Pharaoh. In 2008, having met the preceding year, I came, with Pharaoh, to live with Jean, who was born in Dagenham, Essex, but had been for many years living in Mexico together with 16 dogs; all rescues. We came up to the USA in 2010 and eventually came to Southern Oregon in 2012 with our 16 dogs. Pharaoh now dead and we are down to 6 dogs including Cleo, another Shepherd.

    Liked by 1 person

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  21. Some of the best advice I have read during the lockdown is, instead of making a to-do list, is to make a done-list at the end of the day. List the things you accomplished. Even if it is only getting out of bed and eating a meal, you accomplished something that was not nothing. (I had kinda-sorta done this already by mentally examining my day and seeing if I had accomplished even one thing. Even on the *worst* days, there was almost always something.)

    Liked by 2 people

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  22. I’ve been thinking a lot about productivity. As a writer there is always pressure to get words on the page. Creativity during corona virus is tough. While ithave seemed like the “perfect” time to finish that novel or learn a new language, the truth is that stress, uncertainty, and sadness disrupt our creative brains. These are not normal times, so your normal expectations may be unrealistic. We should be good to ourselves and figure out what we can accomplish each day–even if that means just taking shower.

    Liked by 1 person

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