Keeping work as work
I ran into a colleague today leaving the office with a violin case strapped to her back.
I asked her if she was part of a group and it turns out that she performed in an adult-learners orchestra. These are people from all walks of life, who come together to make music. Not for money, but simply for the love of it.
There's one thing she said her conductor told her that stuck with me:
Don't let work be the reason you miss out on practice.
Work is great for giving you the resources to live your best life. But if we are not careful and let work overtake our lives, there will be no space to make use of those resources. Life shrinks to just the bare necessities.
Work is important. But we would all do well to keep work as work.