I suspect your infant son holds many lessons on maintenance, as do the trees, the birds, the gardens, and Gaia herself. I’m trying to learn them as well…
“That’s why unsubscribes are such a beautiful act of curation for both the writer and the reader.”
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“the idea that maintaining is something that requires our ‘hand’ something that we do manually,’–to me, this denotes care, unrushedness, a sense of personality, all the specifics and flaws associated with doing something ‘by hand.’”
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“an overfocus on growth leads to a lack of curiosity about what we truly want, and what really is enough.”
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Finn SO many incredible reframes in this essay. Thank you for helping me understand my own desires around what I offer more clearly 💚
This question has lurked half formed around my newsletter recently! I appreciate your dive into it. I’ve tried staying focused on what I enjoy providing.
I love the way you dive into the deep definitions meanings and resulting cultural habits of words Finn. Yes indeed, what if maintaining was a vibrant word to describe the ebbs and flows, the cycles of creative life? What if maintaining and tending was valued over growth?
Yes, thank you for bringing up that maintaining could be a "vibrant word" -- can we shift to experience this word as vibrant? And I think the word tending is very interesting as well.
As a Substack writer I relate to this. There is always so much pressure to "grow", to produce, and perhaps my suggestion is that we replace the word grow with evolve. Evolving can happen in many places, for example you are inevitably evolving through your experiences every day, and you are sharing it so generously with us. That is an evolution, or growth, in itself. I've had to also tell this to myself: how do I change the narrative of growth in a capitalist society? How do I make it about my evolution, or the evolution of something around me, and not necessarily about being bigger and better. Just wanted to share my thoughts, narrative change is for me a huge tool of deconditioning. I'm slowly learning. if you're curious, this is what I write ❤️ https://virginiavigliar.substack.com/
I suspect your infant son holds many lessons on maintenance, as do the trees, the birds, the gardens, and Gaia herself. I’m trying to learn them as well…
Yes, absolutely! Much to learn, and many teachers...
Interestingly applicable to any creative source.... music, art, etc.
Not to denigrate the desire to work upon a project (or many!), but to tend to it as best befits.
This has given me some interesting viewpoint checks.
Thank you.
Yes, "to tend to it as best befits." I like that word, "tend." Thank you!
❤️ I live for your writing. ❤️
Thank you so much for saying this. ❤️❤️❤️
“A good question might be, ‘Why do I want that?’”
.
“That’s why unsubscribes are such a beautiful act of curation for both the writer and the reader.”
.
“the idea that maintaining is something that requires our ‘hand’ something that we do manually,’–to me, this denotes care, unrushedness, a sense of personality, all the specifics and flaws associated with doing something ‘by hand.’”
.
“an overfocus on growth leads to a lack of curiosity about what we truly want, and what really is enough.”
.
Finn SO many incredible reframes in this essay. Thank you for helping me understand my own desires around what I offer more clearly 💚
Thank you, I love this distillation of the essay into these quotes!
The emphasis on growth and mass consumption is what got us into the climate emergency. The hustle isn’t worth it.
Absolutely!
This question has lurked half formed around my newsletter recently! I appreciate your dive into it. I’ve tried staying focused on what I enjoy providing.
I agree -- I think staying focused on what we enjoy providing is the most important thing!
I love the way you dive into the deep definitions meanings and resulting cultural habits of words Finn. Yes indeed, what if maintaining was a vibrant word to describe the ebbs and flows, the cycles of creative life? What if maintaining and tending was valued over growth?
Yes, thank you for bringing up that maintaining could be a "vibrant word" -- can we shift to experience this word as vibrant? And I think the word tending is very interesting as well.
As a Substack writer I relate to this. There is always so much pressure to "grow", to produce, and perhaps my suggestion is that we replace the word grow with evolve. Evolving can happen in many places, for example you are inevitably evolving through your experiences every day, and you are sharing it so generously with us. That is an evolution, or growth, in itself. I've had to also tell this to myself: how do I change the narrative of growth in a capitalist society? How do I make it about my evolution, or the evolution of something around me, and not necessarily about being bigger and better. Just wanted to share my thoughts, narrative change is for me a huge tool of deconditioning. I'm slowly learning. if you're curious, this is what I write ❤️ https://virginiavigliar.substack.com/
Love this -- I'll try on that idea of "evolve." And yes, great question: "How do I change the narrative of growth in a capitalist society?"
Your writing resonates with me, looking forward to reading more!
So good to know ❤️❤️❤️ happy to have crossed paths in this crazy world, your writing is so raw and beautiful.