The Joy of Saying No

"We are afraid that we will be forgotten, that if we stop going all the time, the loneliness and emptiness we fear will surface. So we build a false sense of security, warding off uncertainty by making a fetish of constant activity.”

“There is a common phenomenon among those newly diagnosed with cancer. My friend Ange Stephens, a longtime therapist to people with life-threatening illness, calls it a ‘secret gratitude.’ After the initial shock subsides, many of her clients quietly express relief. ‘Now I can say ‘no’ whereas I always had felt obliged to say ‘yes.’’ They tell her ‘Now I can finally rest.’”

— Frank Ostaseski, The Five Invitations