Dolce far niente: Is it as sweet as the Italians would have us believe?

Photo by Umberto Salvagnin

Dolce far niente is an Italian saying, which refers to the pleasure one gets from being idle. Dolce far niente is an exhortation to slow down and embrace lethargy, which, as the term suggests, can feel sweet and delightful. In small doses, this can help prevent stress and anxiety; however, when done with no moderation, it can lead to apathy and inertia.

Ever since I was a kid, I viewed summer vacations as a time where one could totally switch off and embrace the dolce far niente philosophy. The pattern has always been the same: the first days of the summer bonanza felt great, but this would soon turn into slow, unending boredom. I’d go to the beach or play computer games, but, inevitably, by the second week of summer, dolce far niente would have lost all its appeal. Yet, I would persevere because, by then, it would have become part of my summer routine.  Growing up, I found ways to fill up my time such as doing summer jobs and reading, but even in my adulthood, I tend to feel rusty going back to teaching after such a long vacation. To make matters worse, during my Maltese vacations, I usually end up gaining more weight due to the bad habits such as binge eating and lack of activity.

This summer, I decided to make a change. In the Innovation Academy, both students and teachers had to take on one good habit for their month vacation. So I have committed myself to jogging and eating healthy. I’m usually able to maintain these good habits during the year, but it has always been quite challenging to keep this up in Malta; therefore, in order to push myself to embrace these habits, I had to resort to some mind hacks. For instance, I bought new running shorts, so that I would feel more compelled to go jogging in the morning. This time around, I also didn’t bring with me any baggy shorts or pants to push myself me to eat healthy.

A week and a half has now passed since the beginning of my summer vacation and so far I’ve been able to follow my plan; however, I’m having a hard time gauging my success with the healthy eating. Initially, I had pledged I’d eat healthy 5 times a week, but this is still too vague. So, I’ve made my goal more specific: I will eat fruit, cereal and vegetables everyday and limit my intake of fried, starchy food to twice a week. By cultivating positive habits and holding myself accountable, I will be able to have a more productive and healthier vacation.

Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg discusses the importance of targeting keystone habits. These are habits that produce a chain reaction that lead to even more positive habits. So, by taking on jogging and healthy eating, I’m hoping to trigger my reading and writing.  

Ghajn Tuffieha Bay, Malta

The answer to my blog post title is plain and simple: Dolce far niente can be indeed as sweet and delightful, but it has happen in moderation. It's always good to switch off for a couple of days, but in the long run one has to stay engaged to prevent apathy and inertia. Taking an evening dip in the Mediterranean, while relishing the orange sunset can be much more rewarding when you know that your day has been purposeful and productive.