Leo Tolstoy once offered his idea of happiness, which has helped me define success in a way that feels right to me:
“A quiet life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to be useful, and who are not accustomed to have anyone be useful to them; then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one’s neighbor — such is my idea of happiness.”
There is something deeply relieving in this definition, isn’t there?
No striving for applause.
No race for relevance.
Just usefulness, beauty, rest, and love — lived quietly, slowly and beautifully.
What if loyalty to your values, goodness to your loved ones and skilfulness in your work (even if no one celebrates it) is the greatest measure of a life richly lived?
People might not see that you’re winning but the wisdom within you sees that you’re winning. Which to me is the highest form of winning,
The quieter life just might be a concept worth embracing—or at least considering. One with:
—longer walks in the woods
—deeper study of the classics
—simpler food on the table
—slower but brighter work in the world
—calmer conversations with friends
—lower engagement with the news
—wiser reflections with yourself
As technology advances, social order decays and economic structures teeter, I do believe life is calling upon us to slow down, go within and experience a quieter life.
And as we do, we receive the chance to remember our purpose, befriend our gifts, reduce our fears and then, sooner or later, return to the world (and if we’re lucky, born anew).
No comments:
Post a Comment