I've met people that have an incredible fascination for the most varied stuff: bottles, origami, movies. I open my eyes with incredulity when I'm told about the hundreds of items they possess and the most amazing thing to me is often not the actual item or number of them, but the huge amount of energy that can be put into this collecting activity, and also the joy that the person gets from it.
For others, its not something to be collected, but an activity to be done/performed: they play the violin until their fingertips bleed, they play golf religiously no matter what tempest or tornado is strking that day, they read compulsively and track everything so they can affirm with no hesitation that they have just finished their 235th book this year. All real people that I've met.
Every time I hear "when I tried suchandsuch I instantly knew I'd do it for the rest of my life" or "I could give up everything just to do X" and similar affirmations, it always calls my attention. I don't have any passion of the sort. I love doing lots of stuff: I deeply enjoy reading and can devour 900 pages in a few days when I'm hooked. (some other times I will take forever to finish a short book that I'm not really into). I enjoy listening to music and going to concerts. I love nature and sightseeing and just absorbing beautiful landscapes with my eyes in complete silence. Sometimes I like cooking. More often I like eating. I love other stuff that I can't think of right now.
And yet there is no single thing or activity that stands out over everything else. Moreover, I'm pretty sure that if I decided to devote myself to one, with the intensity that those people devote to theirs, one of the following would happen:
1) I'll start to hate my formerly loved "item/activity" and quit.
2) I'll go insane.
I have not come across anything that I enjoy enough to even consider
3) I will want to do it for the rest of my life and would be willing to sacrifice many other things if had to.
as a possible outcome.
I love the variety, and I tend to think that i need the variety. But I envy the intensity.
I think that one of the reasons that I keep trying new stuff, is that something in me wants to find "it" (whatever it is that I could became so passionate about). I'm almost sure I never will though!!!
Rational as I am, I've pretty much convinced myself that variety is good... that it's even healthier, and better, to really love many things rather than insanely adore just one!!! Still it would be nice to know, if it only lasted a short time, what such a passion feels like.
10 years ago
3 comments:
I couldn't possibly agree with you more. I have had these thoughts myself... actually, I have them all the time. I'm afraid that I'm doomed to live a plain low-key responsible and consistent life, and I hope my kids will be more passionate than I am about something.
They were talking about this on National Public Radio the other day, although the topic quickly switched to how to reinvent yourself to find a job in this economy. But it started out well: some lady said that not everybody finds ONE thing that they will love and do for the rest of their lives, and that 99% of us change with time, and our interests will continue to change; so it's important that we learn to reinvent ourselves with the times. I just thought it was very insightful to think about it that way: we need variety, and that's what we thrive on.
Do you feel like if you tried one thing you'd probably end up hating it and dropping it, so it's not worth even considering it? I know I do, so nothing ever changes.
We are SUCH a messed up generation!!!! :)
Great post --
ina
Thanks for commenting!
I do consider new things all the time... I enjoy giving them a try, even if I know I'm very unlikely to find *the* one on each try.
This December I took a diving course. Diving had always sounded cool and exciting for me, and I though this was something I could enjoy and maybe adopt... and it can be done with the SO which is definitely a plus. We both became certified divers, and are looking forward to diving again this year. Did I like it? Yes. Would I do it again? I will, certainly. Do I feel that I've found *the* something? No.
I will need to keep trying more stuff...
Diving?!?! OMG that sounds great! I bow to you. You're definitely one step ahead of a lot of us. Keep trying new things and come back here and tell us all about it :):):):) Looking forward to reading more! :)
ina
Post a Comment