Hard work does not have to be hard

It's Sunday morning, which I usually reserve as a family lazy day. I always encourage my kids to get their homework and household chores done on Saturday. I do the same. That comes from my upbringing.

My father is a hard working man.

He is probably one of the hardest working men I know. At the age of 75 he still works hard but has slowed down a little.

One of the best traits that I inherited from him is his work ethic. But he almost always observed Sunday as a day of rest. My father always made sure to praise my efforts. He gave me difficult tasks to perform around the house. I would sometimes fail at them but he was always there to help me clean up the mess and show me how to do it better. But he always encouraged me to try to figure it out for myself. I believe that is what has given me my "don't give up" attitude.

Even when I did succeed, sometimes dad would constructively show me how it could be done better, whether in quality or maybe a more efficient way to do things.

As a youngster, I always looked forward to Sundays. We would get up and go to church as a family then go out to eat afterwards or go home to watch football. It was a "free" day and we would be allowed to do whatever we wanted.

My dad also played hard.

In addition to the hard work my dad demanded around the house, he also got us involved in playing hard. I played baseball, basketball and ice hockey growing up. That extended into my adult life. I played adult league basketball until my mid-20s and still play pick up games through our local parks and recreation department.

As a kid, my father was always taking us someplace to do something fun. We would go to the aquarium, bowling, roller skating or to a local hiking trail. Some of my fondest memories are our beach trips to the Rhode Island shore.

I still love trips to the beach and hope that I have made my kid's childhood as fun as my dad made mine.

With the right attitude hard work is fun.

I'm sitting on the couch this morning, writing this blog post. I took a break from writing and article for one of my sites to post this. Law & Order is on the TV but in a few hours football will be on.

My oldest daughter is on the couch next to me playing on her phone. This is her "free" day. It is Sunday and no chores will be required of her. I hope that this type of activity sticks with her and in 20 years, she's enjoying sitting on the couch with her teenager just enjoying a lazy day.

But wait, if I'm "working hard" how can I be lazy? Yes, writing articles and blog posts is work. But it is fun for me. I enjoy the niches I have selected, so the research and effort I put into them is fun. And I have a strong sense of reward when I click the publish button.

I hope that you have found as much joy and reward in the hard work that you put forth. It is truly a blessed feeling to be able to work hard in your lounge pants while being lazy on your couch.