This Labor Day, find meaning in your work

Roberto Assagiolo, Italian psychiatrist, wrote a parable about interviewing three stonecutters building a cathedral in the 14th century, all of them doing the same job of cutting stones into blocks, a foot by a foot by three-fourths of a foot.

When each was asked what they were doing, there were three different replies.

The first stonecutter said bitterly, “I am cutting stones into blocks. I do this over and over and will continue to do it until I die.”

The second stonecutter said proudly, “I am earning a living for my family. Through this work, my children have clothes and food to grow strong.”

The third man in a joyous voice replied, “I have the privilege of participating in the building of a great cathedral. It will be a holy light house, where people lost in the dark can find their strength and remember their way and it will stand for a thousand years!”

While these men were doing the same repetitive, physical task, it was the meaning they each found in their work that shaped a dimension of satisfaction and joy — or not.

“Meaning is a human need. It strengthens us, not by numbing our pain or distracting us from our problems, or even by comforting us. It heals us by reminding us of our integrity, who we are, and what we stand for. It offers us a place from which to meet the challenges of life,” says Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen, author of “Kitchen Table Wisdom and My Grandfather’s Blessing.”

Perhaps we can take a few minutes on this Labor Day to become aware of how we think and talk about the work we do. What are the words we use? What are the feelings we express? What difference does it make?