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病に伏す日々
風邪を引いてダウンしている筆者。子供の頃は病気で学校を休むと、非日常を経験できる楽しさがあったが、大人の病人にはさしたる楽しみもない。それでも、気持ちの上で救われることがいくつかある。結局はまた仕事に復帰できることが、何よりうれしいのだ。
Sick days
When I catch a cold, all I want to do is curl up on the couch with a warm blanket and a box of tissues. I want to lie back and let a wave of television wash over me as I sneeze, cough and fall in and out of waking life. I want to be fed occasionally — healthy things like soups, but also sinful things like chocolate — depending on my mood. I want to never have to think about going back to work. Basically, I want to regress to childhood.
When I was a kid, I used to secretly love getting sick. Of course I didn't like feeling sick, but I loved missing school. It was like stepping into another life for a day, peeking into the world outside of my own.
I would watch celebrity talk shows, game shows and whatever movies I wanted. When mom went to the pharmacy, I could always get extra things I wouldn't normally be allowed. I didn't actually read comic books as a child, but whenever I was sick, mom would buy me an Archie comic book or two. I'm pretty sure I was allowed sweets and magazines too.
It's not hard to see why I would develop such a positive association with sickness, although I'm sure I would feel differently about it if I'd ever been seriously ill.
Nowadays, I'm less curious about what the world is like when I'm not at work. I know what it looks like, it's called being unemployed, and it's no fun.
There just aren't as many advantages to being sick as an adult. The work piles up, the television isn't that interesting and all your plans get cancelled because you can't get off the couch. And if you don't have a partner or someone to take care of you, it can all become a bit depressing.
But there are still a few things I secretly enjoy about sick days. Definitely the best part is being taken care of, and I'm lucky to have that covered.
It can also be a relief to pull yourself out of your life for a few days to gain some perspective, especially if you have a high stress job. It can be healthy to see that the world doesn't fall apart if you aren't in it for two days (while at the same time, reminding your colleagues how much they need you).
But, as they say, be careful what you wish for. I would never wish to be sick and out of work for a long period of time and I'm grateful that I haven't been. Having the ability to work and being employed in a full-time job are two things I cherish.
Peeking into the world outside of work might be fun for a few days, but I'm always glad to be back at work in the end.
- catch a cold
- 風邪をひく
- curl up (with 〜)
- (〜にくるまって)丸くなって寝る
- couch
- 長いす
- lie back
- のうのうと寝る
- let a wave of television wash over me
- テレビをつけっぱなしにしておく
- sneeze
- くしゃみをする
- fall in and out of waking life
- うとうとしたり目を覚ましたりする
- regress to 〜
- 〜に逆行する
- missing school
- 学校を休むこと
- peeking into 〜
- 〜をのぞき込むこと
- pharmacy
- 薬局
- Archie comic book
- ティーンに人気のコミック。赤毛の主人公・アーチーと、ベティ、ベロニカとの三角関係を面白おかしく描く
- (am) less curious about 〜
- 〜には興味を失ってきている
- piles up
- たまる
- have that covered
- その点については大丈夫だ(面倒をみてくれる人がいる)
- pull yourself out of 〜
- 〜から抜け出す
- perspective
- 物事の全体を見る視点
- fall apart
- 崩壊する
- colleagues
- 同僚
- as they say
- よく言われるように
- be careful what you wish for
- = be careful what you wish for; you just might get it(「願い事は慎重に。本当にかなってしまうかもしれないから」ということわざ)
- cherish
- 〜を大切にする