“Man cannot live without pleasure,” St. Thomas Aquinas once wrote.

Since he was a saint who spent most of his life writing the Summa Theologiae, this statement might have seemed somewhat out of character.

But, as a Catholic, he knew the proper balance between feasting and fasting.

Our modern world has no sense of that balance of feast and fast or work and leisure. Being so imbalanced, we spend our lives in selfish pursuit of our own economic security and success.

A typical day for me includes waking up at least an hour and half before my first class, going to school, trying to learn without becoming bored, eating lunch, going to work at the library, and finally coming back to my apartment at night to finish my remaining homework.

When I have no homework or decide to procrastinate, I spend my free time surfing the Internet or flicking channels on TV.

If I am really bored, I do both.

This is not true leisure. This is vegging out, emptying my mind so I don’t have to think.

On the rare occasions I am not mind-numbed with information overload and boredom, I do find time for true leisure.

True leisure consists of doing fun things that involve the mind without requiring the memorization and absolute logic of work.

Leisure time should be spent productively, but it should not be related to work or school.

Take the time to read that novel outside of class. Not some cheesy romance or chick-flick novel, but something intelligent like John Grisham’s “A Time to Kill” or Jane Austen’s “Emma.”

Or go out and commune with nature. Too much of our work and school is done inside.

Even if you are not a tree hugger, go take a walk in the park, have a picnic or go trekking along the banks of the Canadian River without being afraid of getting muddy and wet.

Or maybe pursue that hobby you have wanted to perfect.

I would love more time to work on my cross-stitch Santa Claus Christmas cards or to sharpen my musical skills on the piano.

Perhaps you want to really be able to play the guitar and not just fake it on Guitar Hero, or perhaps you love to draw, even though you are not an art major. This is how you should spend your leisure time.

Leisure time should be spent with friends.

We spend too little time enjoying people these days.

This is a sad result of the contraceptive and abortive mindset of modern culture; we find every life disposable and unequal in value.

Have intelligent and silly conversations, play that board or card game if it breaks the ice.

I never consider time spent with friends wasted, even if I should have been studying or running errands.

Yes, education is important, and perhaps the statistics of the financial advantage of a college degree will hold in spite of the depressing economic outlook.

But it is what we do with our leisure time that makes life meaningful. Work and school do create some meaning in life, but they are more directed to survival and self-promotion.

As much as I am fascinated and educated by sticking a probe into the inside of formaldehyde-soaked sharks and cats, I am more fascinated and educated by settling down on my couch with my copy of G.K. Chesterton’s “The Everlasting Man” or Gregory Maguire’s “A Lion Among Men,” a hot cup of green tea and a plate of freshly sliced pears.

I learn more sitting with friends at church after our Sunday supper, talking about everything from having a NERF Gun fight in the weather center to comparing professors and classes.

My schoolwork does have the capacity to intrigue me, or else I would not be pursuing my degree.

But I do know it is only a stepping stone to a hopefully interesting job that will allow me plenty of time to pursue what I find most meaningful in life.

At the end of your life, it will not matter what grades you made or how much money you made. What will matter is how you spent your free time.