Going on Manual for a While

Originally written around 2012. Edited and completed in 2022

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to be given a reel mower by a friend. I had been thinking about looking for one on Craig's List previously, unbeknownst to him. God provides. I got home and tried it out right away. I quickly realized that it needed to be sharpened. So off to the Internet I went to find a how-to video. Easy enough. Then it dawned on me. On this journey I have taken to going against popular culture, somewhat unwittingly in going manual. Manual mower, manual edger, even a safety razor. All of these tools take much longer to accomplish what their modern equivalents do in less than half the time. So why am I wasting time? I'm not wasting time, I'm using my time to enrich my spirit rather than spare time to feed my flesh.

Shaving with a safety razor, when done correctly can take up to twenty minutes. And when done right, it requires me to slow down from my busy life. I need to plan to shave. I have to take care in how I shave. This takes time and intention. This also leaves less time for me to waste doing something meaning less. Not that shaving is a highly spiritual activity. I could just grab a disposable razor and be done in five minutes and on my way. I'd have more time to watch TV, play games, to waste on Facebook, or to drink beers with the guys. The less emphasis I put on my "free" time and the more emphasis I put on meaningful intentional activities, the more value all of my time has.

Outdoor activities that require more manual labor actually keep me outside longer and away from the TV, the Internet, and other mindless media. I am more likely to be outside with my family. Showing my children that manual labor and hard work are good for the body, and the soul. I am actually reminding myself that instant gratification is not instant contentment. All play and little work will kill the spirit, leaving us feeling under utilized. Isn't that exactly what we are experiencing in so many areas? We have so much time to do nothing that we feel under utilized and yet lie to ourselves and each other that we need and deserve more downtime.

By automating so many activities in our lives we actually have created and fostered a sense of uselessness. Let me state now, I am a fan of automation when it is used to reduce repetitive steps. I use automation in the form of computer scripting when converting my Markdown documents to HTML documents, which are then uploaded to this site. I can achieve the conversion and upload of the entire site with a single command. That is where automation is useful. However, the same does not hold true when it leaves us with little to do.

Every spring or early summer I take about a week where I wash my clothes by hand in a utility sink, wring them out, and lay them on a drying rack outside in the sun. At the end of the day I go to the rack with a basket and fold my clothes as I take them off the rack. This process takes time. All day in fact as I need to wait for the clothing to dry in the open air and sun. I could easily finish three or four loads of laundry in the morning alone. The process of cleaning my clothes this way does a few things for me. It reminds me that I can live and work without the washing machine and the electricity required to power it. It reminds me that caring for my clothes by hand is not difficult. And finally, this allows me to appreciate the clothing all the more because I know that it was cleaned by my hand and dried by the air and the sun God provided rather than electricity produced through the burning of a fossil fuel. This manual work is good for my mind and soul.

We are analog beings, not digital. We were designed to work, for work is good for us. When we avoid our work or automate it to the point where it has nothing to do with ourselves, we have gone too far. The reel mower requires me to stop to empty it every few passes. I do not mind this as I can build a compost heap and use that to reduce my trash and ultimately produce compost with which I can grow plants and food the following year. This is good. Also, because the mower is quiet, I can mow very early in the morning and not bother the neighbors.

High effort living means more time in your work and less time for your fleshly desires. This is good as God gave us our gardens to work and to keep, Genesis 2:15.