Katy, I finally finished reading this. You’ve gotten so quickly to the heart of storytelling, and (I think) to one of the reasons why some stories “stick” and others don’t. I’ve been asking myself this a lot lately (would love to discuss with you on Friday), and I think this is an important piece of the pixie
Thank you for sharing this, Katy. Developing our perception is one of those essential habits of being that one may easily see the need for, but never quite grasp how to put into practice. I am curious to know more what you mean when you state this: "Much of what adults must do in learning to “focus” in contemporary life as we’ve currently constructed it is learning to focus on relatively invested-with-meaning, but absolutely inessential, things." This conjures up day planners, goal setting apps, etc. Maybe you're thinking of something else? KO'C
Hi Kiernan - I was going in a different direction with this, though for sure some so-called productivity stuff can become a waste of time -- great as far it helps you meet the real goal, not so much when it becomes an end in itself. I know I have been in situations where I was spending more time planning when and how to work than actually working, or focusing on "productive" tasks that were not so -- e.g. frantically organizing small items to deal with a sense of lack of control over a huge, looming issue that I felt too small to face alone. Those were also evidences of this problem.
But here I meant more the kind of un-necessity that arises from unchecked consumerism and the fact that, in a state of abundance, we tend to construct "needs" that are nothing of the sort -- e.g. "crazy hair day" and "funky sock day" at elementary schools: disproportionate stuff that takes way more energy than it gives, that we just do in order to be doing something, that seems silly to protest precisely because it takes more energy to oppose than it does to conform to, all while it also seems to have apparently no ethical reverberation whatever, but just kind of casually drains away our lifeforce when we have to deal with it.
-- Wow, you're saying, cri de coeur much? But this isn't actually something I see a lot of at my own children's school, but rather something I hear a lot about from other folks. And it seems to me a perfect example of the kind of diversion that can easily get invested with a level of meaning way beyond anything it actually deserves. But then, having said that, I can just hear someone raising the objection that Fun Is So Important! And -- yes, it is! But when fun -- and so many other values -- get treated as things we can purchase for a certain dollar amount ...? and ... place on a rigid schedule... ? That is a deeply weird situation, and being able to perceive its weirdness may not even change it much, but may enable us to feel more sane within it. We could multiply examples.
*puzzle
Katy, I finally finished reading this. You’ve gotten so quickly to the heart of storytelling, and (I think) to one of the reasons why some stories “stick” and others don’t. I’ve been asking myself this a lot lately (would love to discuss with you on Friday), and I think this is an important piece of the pixie
Thanks Sara! Looking forward to it! :)
Thank you for sharing this, Katy. Developing our perception is one of those essential habits of being that one may easily see the need for, but never quite grasp how to put into practice. I am curious to know more what you mean when you state this: "Much of what adults must do in learning to “focus” in contemporary life as we’ve currently constructed it is learning to focus on relatively invested-with-meaning, but absolutely inessential, things." This conjures up day planners, goal setting apps, etc. Maybe you're thinking of something else? KO'C
Hi Kiernan - I was going in a different direction with this, though for sure some so-called productivity stuff can become a waste of time -- great as far it helps you meet the real goal, not so much when it becomes an end in itself. I know I have been in situations where I was spending more time planning when and how to work than actually working, or focusing on "productive" tasks that were not so -- e.g. frantically organizing small items to deal with a sense of lack of control over a huge, looming issue that I felt too small to face alone. Those were also evidences of this problem.
But here I meant more the kind of un-necessity that arises from unchecked consumerism and the fact that, in a state of abundance, we tend to construct "needs" that are nothing of the sort -- e.g. "crazy hair day" and "funky sock day" at elementary schools: disproportionate stuff that takes way more energy than it gives, that we just do in order to be doing something, that seems silly to protest precisely because it takes more energy to oppose than it does to conform to, all while it also seems to have apparently no ethical reverberation whatever, but just kind of casually drains away our lifeforce when we have to deal with it.
-- Wow, you're saying, cri de coeur much? But this isn't actually something I see a lot of at my own children's school, but rather something I hear a lot about from other folks. And it seems to me a perfect example of the kind of diversion that can easily get invested with a level of meaning way beyond anything it actually deserves. But then, having said that, I can just hear someone raising the objection that Fun Is So Important! And -- yes, it is! But when fun -- and so many other values -- get treated as things we can purchase for a certain dollar amount ...? and ... place on a rigid schedule... ? That is a deeply weird situation, and being able to perceive its weirdness may not even change it much, but may enable us to feel more sane within it. We could multiply examples.
Thanks for clarifying...and yes to all of it!