Discover Who You Are in Great Depth
|
|
2.3 Application
The fundament of our ability to apply ourselves, and deal with life properly, is care. Even as babies and as we develop, we learn that people care for themselves, for each other, for plants, animals and equipment. A cared-for child is very likely to serve well as a parent; whereas a poorly-maintained car will break down. Without motivation, it is very challenging to overcome lethargy and selfishness enough to apply ourselves to this, or any other task. Yet we find the urge and willingness to apply energy and focus to the matter at hand when we employ desire and even envy (actually a resource) to stimulate imagination. We want more, and to get it requires application. When this desire is towards material acquisition, it comes at a cost. Inevitably we become drawn into involvements; there are demands made upon us, we have responsibilities and usually develop habits that need feeding. Desire for more and better is a two-edged sword, and our enjoyments need to be balanced against the burden of caring for what we have acquired. Children know better. They play at a particular activity until they are bored and find no need to get tied up by repetition and responsibility. They can be completely focused one minute and entirely distracted the next, never for a moment losing sight of the importance of the enjoyment of life. We learn that our inclination – and application – to be playful, stylish, and expressive of joy is no less important than our ability to grit our teeth and deal with the obstacles we encounter. In fact, play and grace are very often qualities we associate with successful achievers. |