My entire life, I have been pushing for something. The concept of contentment eluded me. When I was younger, I thought being content was akin to being complacent, which I would certainly not allow. So, I pushed forward, always trying to improve, challenge myself, and get to the next level. As I got older, I realized that this continuous course of trying to get somewhere was going to set me up for a life where I would not be able to enjoy what I had. What I had worked so hard to obtain was now mine, but I found myself still restless, still trying to stretch to get to the subsequent attainment. Every year, my income level would improve, but it just never felt like enough. I started to recognize that I needed to allow myself time to enjoy what I had accomplished. Otherwise, I would be unhealthy and leave a trail of broken relationships behind me. However, I uncovered a significant hurdle.

Perfectly Trained to be Busy

I could not take time to appreciate and enjoy what I had because I had perfectly trained my body and mind to be constantly going. Always under stress, always in fight mode. This became normal for me, and anytime I started to rest or relax, anxiety would begin to build because I was not faced with a deadline or a commitment that I had to make. Stillness became impossible. Even when I would force myself to take a break, go on vacation, or spend some time in the mountains, I would the entire time be busying myself with some slightly unobtainable goal so that I could feel that pressure and stress even though I was not in a situation that required that at all. I learned that being still is not something you can just do, it is something that you have to earn. Stillness is something to be achieved because try as you might, the body and mind will not cooperate.

The Stillness Test

Try it right now. Find a place free from sound, bright lights, and any visual distractions. Lay flat on your back with nothing to distract you. Please do not make it comfortable, but make sure you can lie in a position where you are not in pain. You do not want to fall asleep but do not want to suffer. Once you find a position of equilibrium like that, then just lay there. Do nothing, and see how long you can last. Most people will not be able to do this. Your mind will start engaging, wandering, seeking. You will find something to think about, and then your mind will “remember” something that you forgot to do, or that has to be done. Before you know it, you will be up and moving around. Equally true will be your body. You will start to move. Shifting, fidgeting, twitching, and generally squirming around. You will not be able to lie still for an extended period. You will start thinking about your phone, wanting to hear or see something. You just will not be able to be still. If you can still be there for an extended time, you pass the test.

A Day of Rest is Not Just a Commandment

If you can achieve this type of state, then you will be able to be mindful. You can assess where you are at, what you are grateful for, and what is causing you trouble. You will have a healthy outlook on life, and you will feel generally better about your prospects. You can find an appreciation for the life that you have been blessed with. If you can achieve stillness like this, then you can find stillness when you need it. However, if you were anything like me, you will not. Your monkey mind and your constant motion will not stand this test, and try as you might, this will be impossible. Here is the interesting part. You can learn to do this, and you can practice it enough to achieve stillness. It is an art form. It is not some fluffy new-age stuff either; this has been around in most cultures for thousands of years. Every culture, every religion that has been around for a few hundred years ultimately makes this same discovery and comes up with ways, means, customs, and rituals to help people find stillness. There is a reason for this, and that is because constantly pushing yourself each and every day and every hour eventually causes you to break. Society has learned that humans need to take a step back and be still for a while in order to improve and grow.

Your Field will Become Fallow

A day of rest is required, but more than that. The ability to rest is equally important. In any Abrahamic faith, there was an emphasis on one day of rest, as God did during the creation. A great deal of emphasis was spent to clear the clutter from people’s minds and schedules so that this day would be reserved, preserved, and held sacred. Rules were created that modern people think are silly, but they were made for this specific reason. The meaning may have been lost with dogmatic adherence to commandments, but the reason remains. Humans and life need rest periods. If you do not have that season where the field lies fallow, then nothing grows, and you suddenly find yourself not productive, and then all the bounty you have begins to fail.

The Gold is on the Path, not at the Rainbow’s End

I have learned the hard way. Pushed myself so hard, for so many hours and for such a length of time, I was a complete wreck when I finally got to a position where I no longer had to work hard and could kick back and enjoy life. Keep telling yourself that you will enjoy life when you finally get there, and you will find out the hard way. If you toil and struggle your entire life, when you do reach the pinnacle, you are just going to find a whole lot more toil and struggle. There is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, sorry. The gold has been strewn across your path the entire time, and all you needed to do was sit down at one of those benches along the way and notice.

Journey before Destination

I didn’t notice the benches for far too long. I was too busy chasing what was ahead, thinking the next step would finally bring peace, not realizing that peace wasn’t something waiting in the distance. It was something I had to cultivate along the way. The truth is, there’s always going to be another goal, another challenge, another rung on the ladder. But what’s the point of climbing if you never stop to appreciate the view?

I’ve come to understand that stillness isn’t just a luxury or a reward for having “made it.” It’s a necessity—a crucial part of the rhythm of life that keeps us balanced, grounded, and whole. Without it, we become hollow shells, endlessly seeking but never finding, forever chasing but never catching. And so, the real work, I’ve learned, isn’t in the striving—it’s in the stopping. It’s in knowing when to rest, when to reflect, and when to just be.

Now, I take those moments. I sit on the bench. I breathe in the present, and I recognize that contentment doesn’t mean complacency. It means finding joy in the journey, not just the destination.