Monday, December 16, 2013

Morning Thoughts--More on WANTING

I have been reading several books written by Lionel Shriver.  I like the way she expresses herself. Sometimes I turn down pages and underline sentences. This is a first for me. I don't like to deface books, even though they belong to me.  I am now reading The Post-birthday World. I decided to copy one paragraph because it is on WANTING, a subject I wrote about in one of my Morning Thoughts posts recently. Here goes:

"In tandem, she was plagued by an enigmatic sense of loss. Usually one rues the fact that a desire has gone ungratified. Yet maybe the commodity more precious than its fulfillment was the desire itself. This kind of thinking was subversively un-American; the Western economy thrived off of the insistent, serial satisfaction of cravings. Still, perhaps the whole tumbling cycle of wanting and getting was wrongheaded. Desire was its own reward, and a rarer luxury than you'd think. You could sometimes buy what you wanted; you could never buy wanting it. While it might be possible to squelch a desire, to turn from it, the process didn't seem to work in reverse; that is, you couldn't make yourself yearn for something when you plain didn't. It was the wanting that Irina wanted. She longed to long; she pined to pine."

That was from The Post Birthday World, page 160, fourth paragraph.  Her thoughts were similar to my own about WANTING. That it is important as a life force, not something to be viewed as a lack that has to be fulfilled.  Rather, it is instead, a gift, essential within itself. 

I like the sentence: "Yet maybe the commodity more precious than its fulfillment was the desire itself."  And also, "Desire was its own reward, and a rarer luxury than you'd think."

On my last post about WANTING, someone wrote back that my thoughts were Buddhist beliefs. The other day I noticed that a Buddhist center had opened up in my neighborhood. Maybe I will check it out after these busy holidays. 

4 comments:

  1. Wow,,,you sure struck home on this with me. The longing is so much about what keeps me going. Not that I don't mind occasionally achieving the goal...that simply reinforces that the longing was worthwhile. But then I move on to the next possibility. I butt heads with Charles...he's all about the here and now and my eternal pining for the next goal drives him crazy. You saw it when we were in Ajijic...I wanted to look at lots of properties thinking something perfect would push us to move while his attitude was why are we wasting everyone's time when we aren't in a position to buy if we find the perfect place. He does acknowledge that at least when we do things or get to places Ive obsessed about, he knows I've done ALL the groundwork and have all the answers. Thanks for a great morning insight!
    Myron

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    1. Hi Myron, Thanks so much for this feedback. I guess you and I are a lot alike. Let me know when you are coming down to visit again. I would love to see you two again. p

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  2. How great to read this...I live by having dreams for it I didn't have desires then I feel there would be no purpose! Wanting to me means having purpose, it keeps me pushing myself though at times it's hard. Thank you for sharing all this! Love your journals! Oregon pam

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    1. Thank you Pam. Hope you have a wonderful Holiday Season. Your friend, p

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