The Gift of Boredom

With COVID still consuming our lives, I was captivated by Elan Cohen’s essay, Harassing Boredom in the Age of Coronavirus. Cohen reminds us that it is “OK to be bored.” Startled by this simple statement, at first I thought of course it’s okay to be bored. Then I reminisced back to the beginning of quarantine and how infuriated I was by constantly feeling bored locked up in my home.

Once I got past the frustration of being bored during quarantine, I reached new levels of creativity to fill my time and thoughts. Boredom allowed me to master new skills and try the things I had always made the excuse, If I had the time I would. I got into makeup. I ordered this colorful eyeshadow palette online and spent countless hours at my desk painting my face with the vibrant colors. I learned new makeup techniques that I now use today when doing my makeup. I spent hours in my kitchen trying new cookie recipes off the internet and feasting on them with my family. I painted, exercised, watched new movies, and went on numerous strolls around my neighborhood by myself. I did all these things that brought me great joy because I was bored.

Similar to Elan Cohen, “I learned that it is possible to be both bored and happy at the same time…” (Harassing Boredom in the Age of Coronavirus, Cohen). Boredom is often seen as a frustrating circumstance. Cohen reminds us that boredom offers us the time to think and do all the things we can’t when our lives are busy.