Conversation as music

Conversation is a musical thing, like jazz or birdsong: more ‘call and response’ than question and answer. It enables us to travel great distances, but the joy is in the journey not the destination. We are meant to sing and dance along the way, jamming with others, riffing off them, creating something new right here, right now, in a way that no one can alone.

~ Robert Poynton

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First priority

Make your own recovery the first priority in your life.

~ Robin Norwood

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The professional

In my view, the amateur does not love the game enough. If he did, he would not pursue it as a sideline, distinct from his “real” vocation. The professional loves it so much he dedicates his life to it. He commits full-time. That’s what I mean when I say turning Pro. Resistance hates it when we turn Pro.

~ Steven Pressfield

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Anxiety

It is not speaking that breaks our silence, but the anxiety to be heard.

~ Thomas Merton

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The corrections

Education is when you read the fine print. Experience is what you get when you don’t.

~ Pete Seeger

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Pursue your dreams

Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you’ve imagined. As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler.

~ Henry David Thoreau

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Pure joy

I cannot believe that the inscrutable universe runs on an axis of suffering; Surely the strange beauty of the world must somewhere rest on pure joy!

~ Louise Bogan

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Grandiose fantasies

Grandiose fantasies are a symptom of Resistance. They’re the sign of an amateur. The professional has learned that success, like happiness, comes as a by-product of work. The professional concentrates on the work and allows rewards to come or not com, whatever they like.

~ Steven Pressfield

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Thoughtful solitude

One hour of thoughtful solitude may nerve the heart for days of conflict—girding up its armor to meet the most insidious foe.

~ Percival

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Understanding

Do not weep; Do not wax indignant. Understand.

~ Baruch Spinoza

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