You have to live spherically, in many directions.
Never lose your childish enthusiasm
and things will come your way.
Under the Tuscan Sun Movie
It's a rainy day, and that suits me just fine. The world is quiet; all I can hear is the patter of raindrops on the roof. Rain always makes the world feel intimate and manageable. I find I can concentrate better when the the distractions of the world are muted by soft rain.
Speaking of distractions: I have a habit of thinking that I have to focus on just one "really important" project at a time. I get overwhelmed when I have too many items on my to do list.
I sometimes wonder, if I simplified my life, and put all my energy into one project, would I reap larger rewards than if I worked on many different things at once?
I'm not sure this is the right way to go about things, though. Wouldn't life become flat and one-dimensional? Surely pursuing more than one avenue makes life more interesting? Why can't we be multi-passionate? I love illustrating; I love writing; I love blogging. I think they all make valuable contributions to my creative life.
I remember an episode of Dawson's Creek where Dawson was talking to someone about his love for films and film-making. His bedroom was papered from floor to ceiling with movie posters. The friend asked if he had any other interests.
"No," he said, "Films are my life."
"If you're not interested in anything else, what will you make films about?"the friend asked. "You can't make films about films."
I guess that means we need to pursue our chosen path with single-minded enthusiasm, but also leave doors open for other interests to enrich our lives (and our creative projects). Who knows where the next opportunity will come from?
So, I'm resolving to live life
spherically
this week. I will pursue all my passions with childish enthusiasm, and I won't let all these balls I'm juggling overwhelm me.
What do you think? Do you think if you have lots of passions you are diluting your energy? Or is having lots of passions a good thing?
I'd love to hear your thoughts!