10/16/2011

"The heart is a leisurely muscle.


"The heart is a leisurely muscle.It differs from all other muscles How many pushups can you make before the muscles in your arms and stomach get so tired that you have to stop? But your heart muscle goes on working for as long as you live. It does not get tired, because there is a phase of rest built into every single heartbeat. Our physical heart works leisurely. And when we speak of the heart in a wider sense, the idea is implied that life-giving leisure lies at the very center. Never to lose sight of that central place of leisure in our lives would keep us youthful and strong. Seen in this light, leisure is not a privilege, but a virtue. Leisure is not the privilege of a few who can afford to take time, but the virtue of all who are willing to give time to what takes time - to give as much time as a task rightly takes."
Brother David Steindl-Rast