"Life was never meant to be easy": A commentary on Rojek's "Leisure and emotional intelligence"

Abstract

According to Malcolm Fraser, a former Prime Minister of Australia, "life was never meant to be easy." The Buddha agreed, famously stating that "All life is pain." The daily experiences of most of us might confirm this: effort, work, "forcing it," "pushing on," and the anxiety induced by our constant performative tip-toeing through the world, all connote a drain on our reserves - physical, emotional, cognitive - that modern life appears to impose.