A painter cannot paint a masterpiece if they demand to use every color in existence on a single square inch of fabric. The beauty of the painting emerges precisely because the artist chose certain colors and ruthlessly excluded the rest.
Sometimes you cross paths with someone's mind and you take a moment, and sit, and learn. And unlearn. And relearn. And become wiser. And have your soul quietened. Thank you for this.
“I can never read all the books I want; I can never be all the people I want and live all the lives I want. I can never train myself in all the skills I want. And why do I want? I want to live and feel all the shades, tones and variations of mental and physical experience possible in my life. And I am horribly limited.”
—Sylvia Plath, THE UNABRIDGED JOURNAL OF SYLVIA PLATH
To do justice to your soul is to accept the beauty of limitation. Choosing one path means letting go of others, and that is not a tragedy. It is the very thing that gives the chosen path its meaning. A life of commitment to a few deeply held values, a few core relationships, and a focused creative pursuit is richer than a life scattered across a thousand superficial interests.
That is what I would tell myself in my early twenties: stop looking at what your peers are doing. Just do what you want to do, however insane it may seem, because you will end up doing it anyway. A lot of noise entered my life. I went to law school because I wanted a cushy job that would leave me enough time to write. Then I became determined to prove that I could be just as much of a big-shot lawyer as anyone else. I managed it for a little while, and I was miserable.
"One was collecting an experience, while the other was experiencing himself." That will stay with me.
I've come to believe that a meaningful life isn't built by accumulating more moments, but by paying deeper attention to the ones we're already living. Perhaps that's why attention feels so sacred.
We cannot experience every possible life, but we can experience this one deeply. And sometimes depth gives us more than endless variety ever could.
Every time we say "yes" to one thing, we are forced to say "no" to a hundred others, and we spend our lives weeping for the hundred "no's."
A painter cannot paint a masterpiece if they demand to use every color in existence on a single square inch of fabric. The beauty of the painting emerges precisely because the artist chose certain colors and ruthlessly excluded the rest.
These Words are Epiphanic and Enlightening
🤍🤍
Oh this read calmed my sad gap year feelings, thankyou
Oh, my pleasure 🤍
Sometimes you cross paths with someone's mind and you take a moment, and sit, and learn. And unlearn. And relearn. And become wiser. And have your soul quietened. Thank you for this.
“I can never read all the books I want; I can never be all the people I want and live all the lives I want. I can never train myself in all the skills I want. And why do I want? I want to live and feel all the shades, tones and variations of mental and physical experience possible in my life. And I am horribly limited.”
—Sylvia Plath, THE UNABRIDGED JOURNAL OF SYLVIA PLATH
Ooh myyyy!!! This is beautifully written 🖤🖤
ALWAYS LOVE READING YOUR ESSAY, IT MAKES MY HEART A LITTLE LIGHTER AND LESS HEAVY
To do justice to your soul is to accept the beauty of limitation. Choosing one path means letting go of others, and that is not a tragedy. It is the very thing that gives the chosen path its meaning. A life of commitment to a few deeply held values, a few core relationships, and a focused creative pursuit is richer than a life scattered across a thousand superficial interests.
I'm willing and able
This was so soothing to my soul. Thank you.
If you have read this and you still haven't subscribed. I don't know what to say to you.
Love this
Please what is the title of this song
Willing and Able by Noah Kahan
Beautiful!
Simply experience yourself
That is what I would tell myself in my early twenties: stop looking at what your peers are doing. Just do what you want to do, however insane it may seem, because you will end up doing it anyway. A lot of noise entered my life. I went to law school because I wanted a cushy job that would leave me enough time to write. Then I became determined to prove that I could be just as much of a big-shot lawyer as anyone else. I managed it for a little while, and I was miserable.
What a read. Thank you for this.
"One was collecting an experience, while the other was experiencing himself." That will stay with me.
I've come to believe that a meaningful life isn't built by accumulating more moments, but by paying deeper attention to the ones we're already living. Perhaps that's why attention feels so sacred.
We cannot experience every possible life, but we can experience this one deeply. And sometimes depth gives us more than endless variety ever could.