Why did you turn out the lights, did you know that I was sleeping?
"Billy had a framed prayer on his office wall which expressed his method for keeping going, even though he was unenthusiastic about living." – Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five.
Ok, kids. Quick show of hands. How many of you would say that you’re actually “enthusiastic” about living? Or that you know an abundance of people who could be classified as such? I can’t say I’d raise my hand to either of those statements... I, and as far as I can tell most of the people I know, are living because, well, that’s what we do, and hey, what’s the alternative. But enthusiastic? I’m not so sure.
So for those of you that do live enthusiastically, or know people who seem to, my question is this: from whence does such enthusiasm come? Unfortunately, Billy Pilgrim’s poem (“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom always to tell the difference”) is now a cliché, and not particularly helpful in establishing a “method for keeping going” as far as I’m concerned. I mean, I do those things reasonably well. But is that really what keeps me going? I’m not so sure. Maybe the acceptance thing is key, as there are so many things I find inconceivable about this world that I guess if I couldn’t ultimately accept them as being outside of my control and move on, I’d probably have hung it up long ago.
But still. I guess that, when all is said and done, I’d really love to move from “acceptance” to “enthusiasm.” But once you’ve recognized the chasm and “accepted” it, is such a shift from one side to the other even possible?
Billy Pilgrim recognizes that among the things he cannot change are “the past, the present, and the future.”
Yeah. As far as I’m concerned that’s not true, and were I to accept it as such, that knowledge sure as hell wouldn’t keep me going...
Ok, kids. Quick show of hands. How many of you would say that you’re actually “enthusiastic” about living? Or that you know an abundance of people who could be classified as such? I can’t say I’d raise my hand to either of those statements... I, and as far as I can tell most of the people I know, are living because, well, that’s what we do, and hey, what’s the alternative. But enthusiastic? I’m not so sure.
So for those of you that do live enthusiastically, or know people who seem to, my question is this: from whence does such enthusiasm come? Unfortunately, Billy Pilgrim’s poem (“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom always to tell the difference”) is now a cliché, and not particularly helpful in establishing a “method for keeping going” as far as I’m concerned. I mean, I do those things reasonably well. But is that really what keeps me going? I’m not so sure. Maybe the acceptance thing is key, as there are so many things I find inconceivable about this world that I guess if I couldn’t ultimately accept them as being outside of my control and move on, I’d probably have hung it up long ago.
But still. I guess that, when all is said and done, I’d really love to move from “acceptance” to “enthusiasm.” But once you’ve recognized the chasm and “accepted” it, is such a shift from one side to the other even possible?
Billy Pilgrim recognizes that among the things he cannot change are “the past, the present, and the future.”
Yeah. As far as I’m concerned that’s not true, and were I to accept it as such, that knowledge sure as hell wouldn’t keep me going...
posted by P/O at 3/24/2006 10:57:00 AM
6 Comments:
My daughter is what causes my enthusiasm for life. I'm excited to raise her right so that one day I can sit back and watch her develop he rown life. I'm a happy person though, noones bullshit is enough to put a damper on my happiness. =)
My theory is that we best treat living like it's better that being dead, because it just might be. And if it's not, well...bonus. How's that for enthusiasm?
lol i like helen the felons idea! :)
A~
Each year, after I stage my insanely elaborate birthday stage production, I inevitably hear a comment from one of my friends, how "Blood Ray is really one of those people who lives life to the fullest." I'm always pleased to hear such comments and do not doubt their sincerity, but I also know that the speaker doesn't have all the facts.
I love for things, not life. The upcoming film of Dreamgirls, getting tickets to a favorite show, planning a party. It's the those events coming up that keep me going, not the day to day minutiae. I keep going on despite the minutiae, not because of it.
At the risk of being too pithy for words (?), life is freakin' hard. There are days when it's easier than others, but for the most part, it's one jacked up mess that one has to wade through to get the weekend, or the end of the workday or the end of the year.
And I agree that Helen's way of looking at things is probably the easiest pill to swallow.
Maybe I'm delusional, but I love life. As a young man, I loved Clarence Darrow who in his autobiography wrote that while he will undoubtably with his last breath try to draw another he is intellectually convinced that life is not worth living. That was my favorite quote for years.
I was 20 then and 50 now and I enjoy my life. That doesn't mean there are not bad times, tough times, depressing times. But the people I work with can vouch for the fact that I enjoy life and the cool thing is - to some degree it is infectious. And anyone who reads my blog knows that this is anything but the best of times.
I just listened to Slaughterhouse 5 in the car a few weeks ago - had forgotten how wonderful it was.
Robyn - I have six kids - You have it right.
Congratulations, my dear P/O. I've officially thought about this post almost every day since I first read it, but I just cannot seem to come up with a pithy comment that encapsulates my feelings on the subject. So be prepared -- for our next coffee date we will discuss pottery and enthusiasm for life (or lack thereof, as the case may be).
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