The Energizer Bunny vs. the Eufy

I have this robotic vacuum called the Eufy.

“Tim,” all charged up and ready to go!

It’s amazing to me how it seems to get every inch of the floor, and somehow detects the edge of the stairs and doesn’t go tumbling down the staircase. It can get under furniture, and does not connect with anything “smart” so I know my home isn’t being surveilled. (This is one of the main reasons I got this particular one, and I’m pleased with it.)

Eufy is, I must say, very cute. Something about it seems very focused as it goes about its job of picking up the amazing amount of dust and dirt that accumulates every week on our floors, undetected by the naked eye for the most part. (We take off our shoes when in the house, we have air filters, but still, all that dust and dirt somehow creep in.)

Eufy is so fun, my daughter dubbed it “Tim.”

“Tim” is very serious about his job. He goes about it in a way that makes sense to him, but seems random to me. He doesn’t always get every speck of debris, but he’s pretty thorough.

Tim knows exactly what to do when his job is finished. When his energy indicator light goes from blue to orange, he finishes any areas he may have missed, and then he makes a beeline toward his docking station. There he rests, orange light blinking, until he’s fully recharged. When that happens, the light turns blue again and he’s ready to tackle another level of my home. (We have three.)

I could take a lesson from Tim here. When my “blue energy light goes to orange”–i.e. I’m running out of energy, around 8pm—I should slow down and get ready to recharge.

Another thing about “Tim”: he is dependent on me to keep him going. I have to plug in the charger. I have to clean him out before he can tackle another job.

Contrast all this with the Energizer Bunny, that symbol of endurance and relentless energy. (I found out from ChatGPT that this commercial was first aired on October 30, 1989. Its iconic image was featured in the 2025 Super Bowl ad, which showcased a lineup of iconic brand mascots collaborating to deliver groceries on game day. It’s become a symbol of endless energy and unstoppable momentum.)

It’s also a symbol of the cultural value of productivity: you’re supposed to go and go and go until you succeed, until you get to the top of the ladder.

For most of my life, I followed the Energizer Bunny way (or tried to). Until I burned out.

Few people can keep up an “Energizer Bunny” pace. (One person who seems to be able to is President Donald Trump. Love him or hate him, you have to admit he seems to have superhuman energy. People say he never sleeps. I wonder if someday things will catch up with him. I pray he can continue for as long as he needs to.)

I am trading in the Energizer Bunny for the Eufy. “Tim” knows when it’s time to stop and recharge. (So do cats and dogs and just about everything else in nature. It’s just us humans who think of ourselves more as machines than creatures.)

“Tim” is also dependent on me. Energizer Bunny has all the energy already inside it . . . until it runs out. Then there’s no recourse. “Tim” can be recharged again and again, from a power source outside of himself.

I am dependent on God for the energy, which can be renewed any time I go back to him and rest. Come to think of it, God seems to think we need such recharging once a week. Remember the Sabbath . . .?

Ahhhhh . . .