Doing

I met up with a friend yesterday for a walk and a coffee. She, like me, gave up work recently without another job to go to. For a few precious months, she is allowing herself time to catch up with everything, plan her new venture and just be. We were talking about how both of us have had huge amounts of stress to deal with over the last few months, but that we had been better placed to handle it due to our new, simpler way of life.  I mentioned that the lovely Mr D often asks me "What have you done today?", when he gets home. I struggle a bit with this question for two reasons - a) despite doing lots, none of it is particularly noteworthy, so I end up saying "Not much" or "just the usual" and b) I'm not sure I want my day measured by what I have done.
Modern society seems to be entirely based around doing and achieving. If you haven't squeezed 14 hours of activity into a 12 hour day, you are lazy, a lesser being. People should 'have it all', juggling every aspect of their lives - working, volunteering, child rearing, housekeeping, finding time to go to the gym, socialising, caring etc etc...
Even holidays aren't spent relaxing anymore - long gone are the days of deckchairs and knotted hankies with the most excitement coming from a donkey ride on the beach and an ice cream!
I know I'm guilty of this mentality. I am still judging myself if I haven't achieved a whole list full of things every day and if one more person asks me "what are you doing with your time now you're retired?", I might explode. I am 48 and NOT retired and I do what everyone else does with their day if they aren't going to work!
This morning, before 12, I have fed and watered the chickens and cleaned them out, fed and watered the cats, swept the floors and hoovered the lounge and stairs, the dishwasher has been emptied, the porch has been swept, I've wiped down the bathrooms, the beds have been made, I've mowed the lawn, strimmed the edges, cut the hedge and pruned, I've caught up with my neighbour over the fence, the bins have been emptied, I've done a load of washing and hung it out and ironed 18 items of clothing and put them away. This afternoon, I will plan the menu for next week and write the shopping list, I will cook a meal for later, clear another drain (I know!!!!) and replace the batteries in the smoke alarms.
I'm doing these things not because I feel the need to be doing and certainly not because I wish to be competitively measured by how much I've done. I'm doing these things simply because they need doing in order to make our lives pleasanter. I won't be reporting back to Mr D this evening on the days achievements, but he will come home to a clean and tidy house, a nice meal and clean, pressed clothes to wear in his wardrobe.
Perhaps I'd like his question to be "What was your favourite moment today?" Or "what has made you happy today?"