June 4No Apologies
My life is not an apology, but a life. It is for itself and not for a spectacle. I much prefer that it should be of a lower strain, so it be genuine and equal, than that it should be glittering and unsteady.
Ralph Waldo Emerson—Self-Reliance (1841)
The pursuit of purpose through persistent simplicity runs through much of the transcendentalist literature and lectures and is likely one of the most efficient paths to self-reliance.
And yet, we desperately seek to find the “why” in our journey so that we can define it in terms that sound glittering.
Consider this additional Emerson thought from his essay “The Over-Soul”:
But the soul that ascends to worship the great God is plain and true; has no rose-color, no fine friends, no chivalry, no adventures; does not want admiration; dwells in the hour that now is, in the earnest experience of the common day.
So maybe you can stop searching for that grand purpose to describe your life, and then you can stop apologizing that you don't know what yours is.
Genuine and equal actions, feeling your purpose, rather than looking for it, is how you live today instead of some story about your past or future.
You don't need to justify your life—just rock it.
Challenge Question
- What are you apologizing for right now?
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