mañana

courtesy of caterwauls.ca

Since I am a day late posting my blog – I thought it would be a great time to discuss the Mexican idea of mañana. Now, I have to admit that prior to living in Mexico, I would have run myself aground making my deadline yesterday. But the two years I spent in Mexico have altered me in many ways. For one, my type A personality is a little toned down. I had a choice yesterday between finishing my blog or hanging out with my friend. And in the spirit of mañana, I chose my friend 🙂

So you are probably wondering what exactly is the spirit of mañana. Well for starters, Mexicans do not embrace the time-is-money mentality of many other cultures. In fact, there is an old Mexican saying that “North Americans live to work, but Mexicans work to live!” So sometimes, or most times, it’s ok to leave a job unfinished to hang out with your family or friends rather than working overtime.

courtesy of cheerfulmonk.com

Also, Mexicans view time as circular. Whereas, Americans, being a goal-oriented society, see time as linear. Therefore, Mexicans do not do activities according to a precise schedule because it is not viewed as important. It can always be done later or mañana. In Mexican society, working like a robot or adhering to a rigid schedule can be seen as taking the spice out of life. Of course, there are exceptions to
mañana, flight schedules and bus schedules for example.

It took me almost a year living in Mexico before I eventually figured out that life was not just about being productive and goal oriented. It was ok to read a good book and lounge around in the afternoon. It was not just ok but necessary to hang out with friends after work and enjoy a tasty beverage. So yesterday, when my friend called and asked me to dinner, I hesitated only for a moment before I said yes. There would always be mañana to finish my blog. And here it is…

Enjoy..!! ¡Hasta mañana!

courtesy of keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk