Favorite things to do

If you ever wonder what your favorite things to do are, or what's the best way to spend your leisure time, may I offer these wonderful suggestions taken from an unlikely source—the section on the Sunday rest from the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

• Family. “Christians will also sanctify Sunday by devoting time and care to their families and relatives, often difficult to do on other days of the week.”
• Good works. “Sunday is traditionally consecrated by Christian piety to good works and humble service of the sick, the infirm, and the elderly.”
• Prayer. “On Sundays and other holy days of obligation, the faithful are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder the worship owed to God, the joy proper to the Lord's Day, the performance of the works of mercy, and the appropriate relaxation of mind and body.”
• Study. “Sunday is a time for reflection, silence, cultivation of the mind, and meditation which furthers the growth of the Christian interior life.

My personal favorite is Study. Here are some of the resources that I like to immerse myself in on those rare occasions that I have blocks of free time:

• Music: Listen. Music appreciation course CDs and textbook.
• Philosophy: Aristotle: the desire to understand.
• Poetry: The New Penguin Book of English Verse. Unlike most poetry anthologies which are organized by author, this organizes the poems by date of composition. So it feels like a kind of time machine.
• Religion: Introduction to the Devout Life. St. Francis de Sales.
• Art: The Story of Art. Generously illustrated story of the artistic masterpieces of the Western world.