Shower vs. Bath
Most people in our society prefer showers. Each year, consumers spend millions building or renovating their bathroom, though little time is spent in there. Unless, of course, you're like someone in my family who enjoys reading a chapter or two while sitting on "The Throne"! When I ask people why they prefer showers, the three most common answers include: *it is cleaner than a bath; *it is more invigorating than a bath; *it is faster than a bath.
All right, I will admit that if you spend most of your day at a particularly "dirty job", then a shower may be preferable at first. But I am troubled by the "invigorating" and the "faster". Most of us wake up in the morning and ready ourselves as best we can to deal with all the stressors out there. The commute, the meetings with bosses and customers, the unpleasant co-workers, the deadlines, etc. etc. When about to face such stressors, I really would prefer something to calm me down, not something to "invigorate" me and give me that extra heart-thumping! And when I return home in the evening, I don't need another dose of vigor. What I need is a way to prepare myself for a full, healthy, restorative sleep. A sleep that is not induced by drugs or other means such as alcohol. That kind of sleep does not regenerate you.
You wake up in the morning feeling groggy and still tired. You mutter something like, "I could have slept another ten hours". So what do you do?
You turn on the radio, more often than not it'll be a station with some fast-babbling DJ and excessively loud music. You may say this helps you wake up. No, you have programmed yourself into thinking that! Next, you step into that fast, heart-thumping shower. You get dressed while drinking coffee. You barely say good-bye to the family, and off you go to earn another miserable buck.
Unfortunately, many people today believe that the constant race with the clock, the lack of sleep, the eating-on-the-run are signs of a productive, even successful individual! Right.
And I'll see you sooner than later in the coronary unit.
I did not write this page to scare you. I'm hoping that it will provide you with some food for thought.
Are we truly healthier and happier than our forefathers? I think not.
Something's got to give. Please don't let that something be you.
Why we bathe
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