E.B. White said, “I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day.” Do you have similar desires tugging at you every morning? I desire simplicity AND celebration; working with passion AND time with my family; to give And to receive. Although I am not convinced I can improve the world, I do want to pour forth blessings, beauty, and love into it, and I want to continue to determine how to keep my own burden upon it small.
Sometimes I find a halting duality in my desires, when I fall into either/or thinking: improve OR enjoy, simplicity OR celebration, work OR play. Then it is hard to plan the day. I am saved often by the reminder of Both/And. I may both work and play, both improve and enjoy, both give and receive.
I offer these quotations from my Happiness book of quotations, published by Andrews McMeel, coupled with these friendly pictures of a goat at North Tabor Farm. I love goats. I love their full embodiment of humility and playfulness, enthusiasm and curiosity. They do not seem torn between the desires to improve or enjoy- they simply enjoy.
Live in each season as it passes;
breathe the air,
drink the drink,
taste the fruit.
~Henry David Thoreau
Mix a little foolishness
in with your serious plans.
It is lovely to be silly at the right moment.
~Horace
The burden of self is lightened
when I laugh at myself.
~Rabindranath Tagore
The car has broken down,
my love is far away.
My bones feel weary,
and my mind is tired.
Still, I can say with joy
that happiness remains.
~Ingrid Goff-Maidoff
Dwell as near as possible
to the channel in which your life flows.
~Henry David Thoreau
It is the simple things in life that make living worthwhile,
the sweet fundamental things
such as love and duty, work and rest, and
living close to nature. ~Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Infinite Goodness has such wide arms,
it takes everyone that turns to it.
~Dante
Such blessings we receive,
such gifts of grace!
If we have wandered
from the path of gladness,
point us back to Life!
~Ingrid Goff-Maidoff
The journey is the reward.
~Chinese Proverb
If only we’d stop trying to be happy~
we’d have a pretty good time.
~Edith Wharton
Be happy. It’s one way of being wise.
~Colette
The big question is whether you are going to be able
to say a hearty “yes!” to your adventure.
~Joseph Campbell
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
What a wonderful, wise, interesting, expanding post! And the goat photos are precious! Thank you for a truly inspiring post! xo
It is good to know that we don’t have to choose one thing, but that we can embrace everything each and every day!
Such happy, cute little goats
Oh, Ingrid, I love these little goat faces. They do bring joy! I am with you these days that the journey is not about selecting one thing or another, but flowing with what is here. I don’t particularly care for the word balance, because it implies the duality of which you speak. I much prefer harmony, a gentle ebb and flow, surrender and gain, with all that is. Breathing helps restore that connection for me. And nature. And dear friends.
xxoo
Hi Ingrid! I feel this conflict quite often, especially with my children, where I want to be present with them but am also pulled by the reading, learning, writing, reflecting, blog-browsing etc, that also brings me so much joy! Your suggestion to think in terms of “both/and” is so helpful. Just reading it calmed the anxst within!
Love the goat pictures–they really are funny, playful animals. My parents have them on their property and we enjoy them very much when we visit. Thank you for sharing your happiness quotes. They are really lovely!
Hello friends, thank you for your wonderful comments! I really appreciate you stopping by, and sharing your insight and wisdom with me. I almost feel as if we have had tea together…!
tea time at Ingrid’s… what fun!
i agree…it doesn’t have to be an either/or… why would we want to be so restrictive? i’m also these days trying harder to use “want” words less… instead of wanting to enjoy, why not just enjoy? … what am i waiting for?
lovely little faces in your photos…
Oh, my gosh … wonderful!! I’ll now have a smile for the rest of the day:-)