Frankly Speaking: Leisure, relaxing tough to define in hurry-up world

Allow me to slip in a word here on the subject of this week's Inside Business section, "Travel and Leisure." You may notice that the section is unusually small this week and made up almost entirely of travel news.

Leisure is implicit in the subject of travel, of course, assuming that one might actually relax on vacation; but to treat leisure as a subject in its own right is a little problematic, given that the very word makes Midwesterners squirm.

Consider the definition, which according to my dictionary is "free, unoccupied time during which a person may indulge in rest, recreation, etc."

Don't ask me what "etc." might be. I don't want to think about it.

In any case, I submit that leisure isn't on the list of Things We Are Taught Growing Up In The Midwest.

Who among us can remember a single time the parents ever said along the way, "Son (or daughter), you need to learn to relax. You've been working much too hard. You need to learn the meaning of leisure.'"

Not I. Any time my dad spotted me in a state that could be confused with leisure, he would get this look and say, "What are you doing?"

"Uh ... relaxing," I would say.

"What? Relaxing?" he paused for dramatic effect, "when there's a lawn outside to be mowed?"

Or it might be, "Relaxing? When there are windows to be washed?" Or ... well, you fill in the blanks.

Thus was planted forever the conviction that one's right to relax i.e., indulge in leisure depends on whether there are Things In This World That Need To Be Done.

I was just smart enough to realize that the world is at all times absolutely full of Things That Need To Be Done, and given that fact, one would never in his or her life ever really be entitled to leisure.

I submit that this is the very seed of the Midwestern character.

I also submit that most of us who "growed up" around here spend a good part of our lives overcoming the guilt that we are physically unable to work 24 hours a day.

I'm not complaining, understand. That's just the way it is.

If, however, we are so fortunate as to eventually acquire the ability to indulge ourselves in some leisure, we might want to treat ourselves to one of the greatest pleasures of life in this part of the world; to wit, the simple, leisurely drive through our town.

It's one of those things that can easily be taken for granted because it's right under our noses. Nonetheless, Springfield is a truly extraordinary city, a place that blends country-town charm with flashes of urban style and even grandeur. It's a marvelous architectural mix of cottages, sturdy old Midwestern houses, restored Victorians, modern ranch-style homes and even opulent mansions, old and new. Most are set in neighborhoods of neatly manicured lawns with abundant trees, shrubs and flowers, and sometimes even amid lush gardens.

The gardening is so rich here that back in the days when I was editing garden books in California, I often tried to dissuade the publishers from basing their books almost entirely on gardening on the West Coast. "If you want to see some truly great gardens," I told them, "just drive down the back alleys of Springfield, Missouri, and see what people are doing with their back yards. Or just drive through the neighborhoods and see how colorful they are."

It's true, and after a long and surprisingly harsh winter, spring, and all of the extraordinary beauty it brings to our town and neighborhoods, is almost upon us.

Springfield is simply one of America's prettiest cities, and well worth enjoying.

Then, of course, there is the Missouri countryside for those leisurely and especially pleasurable drives. The Ozarks has been called "the richest biotic region" in the world. Indeed, the Missouri Conservation Department has identified 730 wildlife species, 3,300 plant species, and 200 fish species in the state, and nearly all of them are native in the Ozarks. It's an abundance of life that staggers the imagination, and it's all ours to enjoy.

Missouri, thankfully, is among the most ecologically minded and environmentally progressive states in America. The Missouri Conservation Department maintains superb forest, stream and wildlife management programs. It also provides free subscriptions to its beautifully designed and written publication, The Missouri Conservationist, to help keep Missourians and others mindful and protective of the state's natural treasures.

Let's face it, there are worse things than being a Midwesterner.

(Frank Shipe is the Inside Business editor of the Springfield Business Journal.)