Return from Holiday
Editorial
Autumn for most of us is a time of settling down again to the ” tedium, the frenzied, ceremonial drumming of the humdrum ” daily round, with an occasional glance thrown back over our shoulders at the past holiday. Holidays are in fact expanded by looking forward to them beforehand and looking back on them afterwards; but even so, October is a call to desk, bench or whatnot, until April reminds us to get the maps out again.
It is perhaps interesting to reflect on the use of leisure from day to day and weekend to weekend, as well as the leisure of a holiday. Leisure has so far not been the subject of much government planning, and the idea would very naturally and rightly be viewed with horror, for the essence of leisure is “to do just what I like, when I like and how I like Even if planning increased leisure by 50 per cent., it would still be a contradiction in terms that it should be enjoyed according to plan. Planning has therefore concerned only the length of holiday? and there can be no doubt that many people, particularly housewives, still have too little?and has not interfered with the way holidays are spent.
Most of us who arrange our own leisure tend, consciously or unconsciously, to arrange to do something very much the opposite of what we do at work, and it would certainly seem a reasonable custom that those who spend all day working with their brains should need to turn to physical exercise and mental relaxation in their leisure; conversely, manual workers, a11 in particular those in routine jobs, know th2’ their intellectual ability should benefit fro^ creative mental occupation in their holidaysot hobbies.
The evil state of men who never relax >j familiar enough, but they are not yet widespread though the years of anxiety have increased the’f numbers. What is far commoner is the plig’]1 of the routine manual worker whose leisure !; never spent in any creative occupation. This ‘? nowadays easy to understand: mass product^ in work does not encourage initiative, and $ offer of a holiday or leisure where details ^ arranged for him attracts the individual whose initiative has thus been sapped. Hence ^1 growth of ” mass produced ” or spoon-# leisure?listening to music rather than playifl? watching games rather than taking part-?^^ the growth of sensational reading or film-goifl?’ Other civilizations than ours have, of course had their bread and circuses in their declinf* The ability to amuse oneself alone, with hai^5 or brain, is getting rarer.
Yet the would-be reformer is faced with paradox?if he encourages means of usir?leisure constructively, he may be helping 111 spoon-feeding and leaving no room for initiatiy^’ What is he to do ? He must be satisfied W#j! creating opportunities for leisure to be vve. spent and hoping that the opportunities gradually and occasionally be taken. It ^ be slow.
The Editor regrets that Part V of the series ” Maintenance of Mental Health ” does not appear in this issue. It is hoped that it may be included in the Winter number.
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