The path of life is strewn with
vagaries. That is pretty much the ultimate cliché. But it's also
what makes life interesting. If it wasn't for the potholes, canyons
and unexpectedly raging rivers, what would we do with ourselves?
Most people's ideas of paradise revolve
around sunny beaches, lazy afternoons and general ease and leisure.
Dull.
Boring.
After a few weeks of that, you'd find
yourself casting about for something, anything, to relieve the
monotony. Boredom is one of the most powerful motivators mankind
has, right up there with fear, hunger and lust. Lack of social
contact is less necessary than having something to do. If you find
yourself in a place where you want for nothing, you will find
something to occupy yourself with.
That's why the idle rich often seem to
spend their time drinking, taking drugs, and engaging in all sorts of
weird hobbies and sexual practices. There's nothing else to really
challenge them, to make them sit up and take notice of the world.
Whereas the happiest people are those
who are busy. Not so busy that it's harmful, but busy with something
productive, something that provides them with some kind of problem
solving or accomplishment structure to provide a sense, not of
pleasure, but of satisfaction.
The unexamined life is not worth
living, it is true. The unused life is even less so. Use your life,
even if it is only to see what is out there and take note of it.
Collecting perspective can be an amazing thing to do.
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