Allowing moments of pleasure and pause to reset your creative energy
because we have enough pain and pressure
“I am asking people to be as rigorous in their pleasure as in their criticism” —Barbara Kruger
I tried to find a positive quote on pleasure by a philosopher, and first found the one below by Schopenhauer; most of the other quotes I found were about denying pleasure. Perhaps the belief we are only supposed to feel numb or endure pain and deny pleasure at all costs is why pleasure often has the icky adjective guilty before it.
Illusion is the first of all pleasures. ―Voltaire
“Pleasure is never as pleasant as we expected it to be and pain is always more painful. The pain in the world always outweighs the pleasure. If you don’t believe it, compare the respective feelings of two animals, one of which is eating the other.” ―Schopenhauer
It is the nature of the wise to resist pleasures, but the foolish to be a slave to them. ―Epictetus
We see extravagant ballrooms being built as citizens are told they will starve, and we think the rich are perusing pleasure. These guys above are spot-on.
But to my mind, the greedy are pursuing a destination they’ll never arrive at.
I believe we can get pleasure, perhaps the most pleasure, by diving deep into the beauties and simplicities of life. True pleasure is not purchased, and it rarely comes from accolades or achievements; it is simply a recognition of what’s always there—this incredible life.
I understand the sense of guilt that can come for some of us when we allow ourselves to feel good about who we are and where we are; after all, we are so often focused on creating, creating, creating … giving, giving, giving. Our worth is tied up in our accomplishments.
This is a simple reminder that we are here to experience it all, even during the hardest of times. We can take time and dive into the sensation of *gasp* pleasure. Do so in your art, your relationships, your interactions with the natural world.
I promise it will do you and your art good.
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