Italians Are Teaching Me About Rest

What many Americans call 'rest' is actually 'recovery'

In Italy, shops and offices close midday, which provides time for a languorous lunch, a nap—or both. This period is called riposo, which means “rest” in English, and it’s similar to what Spanish-speaking countries call a siesta. 

Part of the reason I moved to Italy¹ was to live in a culture with different values than the US, particularly regarding professional success and productivity, and because I felt like I had forgotten how to rest.

Daily free time to rest is not something many Americans experience; not even children who have seen their recess time decrease or disappear outright, and the time that was once used for unscheduled play is directed toward more “productive” endeavors to shape kids into more attractive college applicants and worker bees in our hyper-capitalist economic system.

In fact, what Americans—and increasingly Brits, Canadians, and Aussies—often call rest is actually recovery.

We will spend the weekend entombed in weighted blankets while binging Netflix and generally…