on life
‘There is a meaning to life that can be peripherally sensed by being astounded or astounding others. And it may be fully glimpsed by astounding yourself.’
Jo Tinsley • The Odditorium
On cosmic insignificance:
We are not at the centre of anything, thankfully. We are minuscule bundles of evanescent matter on an infinitesimal corner of a boundless universe. We don't count one bit in the grander scheme ~ that should be a liberation. We should gain relief from the thought of the kindly indifference of spatial infinity, an eternity
... See more- I know that environmental influence is the most effective form of behavioral control. Accordingly, if you want radical change, radically change your environment. Being in the wrong city will cancel out years of self-improvement.
Sasha Chapin • 50 Things I Know
the good life, the life without the pressure of time. A life we could lead together, even if we had to sell apples along the road.
Sheldon Vanauken • A Severe Mercy
On taking action…It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.
James Clear • Masters of Habit: Rituals, Lessons, and Quotes from Marcus Aurelius
But what if your purpose is simply to build a good life? To raise kind children. To cook a little better each year. To read a few excellent books. To notice the seasons. To build meaningful relationships. To help others. To give time - and money if you can - to causes you care about.
Pamela Clapp • Why the French Don’t Obsess Over Purpose
Already in 1877, Robert Louis Stevenson called busyness a symptom of deficient vitality, and observed a sort of dead-alive, hackneyed people about, who are scarcely conscious of living except in the exercise of some conventional occupation.