Responsibility and Meaning
We don’t abandon our pursuits because we despair of ever perfecting them.
Epictetus, Discourses, 1.2.37b
Epictetus is being generous in my experience. I know that I often abandon pursuits before ever starting them in fear that they will fail or fall short of what I imagine. One consequence of this seems to be that I also minimize the amount of struggle involved in bringing something new into the world. The world is indifferent to my gifts. To even start a new, worthy endeavor I have to muster the faith that it is a gift; that it is important to invest my time and energy in, that if nothing else, the act of birthing the idea into the world will be the next step in my transformation into the potential ‘best’ me I intuit is possible.
Jordan Peterson talks extensively about the connection of the experience of meaning and the shouldering of responsibility. To take the leap, I find I must marshal as many reasons as I can invent to pursue the path. A life of meaning is one of those. Necessity is another. A sense that God is watching and cheering me on. The potential of acclaim and inspiration that my actions will generate in others. A legacy for my family and my community. I can use all of these to prod me on.
August 10, 2018