For me, as an introvert, it would be something like this: wake up late, eat, bathe, play music, watch some movies and chill, eat snacks while doing so, sleep again, wake up by 2:00 pm, take lunch, have a short walk, visit some friends and play games, return to the house and sleep again, wake up in the evening and have dinner, sleep again, and wake up the next day refreshed and ready for work.
That sounds like a dream come true, right? But wait, did I just say a perfect weekend? Does it even exist? Well, maybe it does for some people, but not for me. Let me tell you why.
Weekends are many things for many people. To some, they are days for relaxing, chilling, and Netflixing after stressful workdays.
To some others, they are days to take care of the home, clean, and keep clean.
Whatever it is to you, I tell you that mine is not what I want it to be at the moment.
I have always wished for a blissful weekend where I get to be lazy, relax, chill, receive a baby girl treatment, and sleep off the stress of workdays. But sadly, wishes aren't horses, so we don't always get what we wish for.
First, my weekends start on Saturday and end on Monday, as I go to work from Monday to Friday.
On Saturday, I don't wake up as early as I do on workdays. Most times I stay in bed till 9 a.m. or until whenever my parents start shouting at me to go sweep the compound.
As the last child of the family and the only girl child staying with my parents, my ideal weekend is not what you will call ideal, but what can I do?
I usually spend Saturdays doing various house chores, ranging from cleaning the house to cooking and washing... As easy as it may sound, it is not very easy. Someone may say, Is it not cooking, washing, and cleaning? No, it is not.
Let me break it down. First, we occupy five rooms, kitchen, toilet, and bathroom excluded, and in each of these rooms, I have to sweep very well and mop the floor. Next, I have to sweep the kitchen, wash dirty dishes, and mop the kitchen floor.
Up next is to wash and clean the toilet and bathroom, fetch water, and wash some clothes for myself, mom, bro, and sometimes bro. Plus, there are other little errands I have to run.
By the time I'm done with all those chores, it's already evening. That's when Dad comes home with foodstuffs, and I start preparing dinner. He usually buys meat for the weekend, and I have to cook and roast it since we don't often fry meat. I finish as late as 10:00 p.m., feeling very tired and with no strength left even to bathe. That's how my Saturdays usually go.
On Sundays, I wake up a bit later, although not as late as on Saturdays. This is because I'm usually exhausted from the previous night and the additional chores I have to do. I also attend our Christian meeting, so I can't sleep in too much. My mom takes charge of breakfast and other meals on Sunday mornings. After some light chores and running errands for my family, I have my breakfast and prepare for our Christian meeting.
I leave the house around 11:30 AM for the meeting and usually return home a few minutes before 3:00 PM, sometimes right at 3:00 PM. Then, I start preparing lunch, aiming to finish by 4:00 PM or even earlier. After lunch, I take a brief rest, often sleeping until around 8:00 p.m. During this time, I try to catch up on some much-needed rest. When I wake up, I handle a few tasks, such as preparing dinner if my mom hasn't already done so and organizing the kitchen. After completing these chores, I go back to bed, ready to wake up the next day, Monday, and begin another workweek.
I wish my weekends would be more balanced between work and play. I don’t mind doing chores, but I also want to have some time for myself and my hobbies. I want to relax, chill, and enjoy life. Is that too much to ask?
