Why Boredom Is a Virtue

“Boredom may be an intrinsic part of life for practically everyone, but it needn’t be destructive. In fact, boredom can be a force for good.” Give kids freedom, says one commenter at The Guardian. “Boredom opens channels,” says Edward Collier. “If you’re truly, stultifyingly bored and, despite desperate complaints, no one sees fit to alleviate your boredom, then you have to rectify the matter yourself. It was when I was bored beyond belief at the age of 13 that I discovered that the piano, an instrument I’d hitherto regarded as a relict of the age of Torquemada, could be induced to make sounds that chimed with my nascent musical sensibility. I began composing, something I still do to this day.”