Wow! What a thought-provoking essay. I was just listening to a radio show on my drive to work which asked if New Age cultures are a little too focused on the self. Maybe this is a sign that 2025 is the time to look outwards, not inwards.
I felt that you really tied it together with the solo date/solo travel - calling them "self love" is a very shallow label.
I do find myself wondering if you are presenting the destination as the goal. Some people need to build the courage and the time to make interesting mistakes or even engage with life in the same vein as these artistic greats. Training oneself to reflect, look outwards, and take risks is a process - I'd be curious to hear your opinion on how a "beginner" should get started!
The way I see it out inner worlds and outer worlds are connected. No one sees the same world. Your world is different than mine. Our internal compass maps our way in the outer world. It's just the superficial of looking inwards that unsettled me.
I don't know what the destination is here? I feel the essay was more journey oriented like within a process, you live a life that's more than eating, sleeping and 24x7 breath intakes.
Time is limited, I agree. Courage is also hard to come by, that's why who make a difference are so few.
I don't know how a beginner should get started. I wonder if even I have started or not.
Thanks for reading the essay Will, and sharing your thoughts. I appreciate it:)
To be honest, I felt like the destination you outlined was one where someone was exhibiting the list of self-love traits. Clearly, I read it differently! Speaks to the different outer worlds I guess, haha.
I think starting is also relative. But I’d say you have - feels like it requires a certain amount of vulnerability and empathy to put writing in front of other people. It’s a good first step.
I’d say I’m gonna be on the journey forever, haha. Feels like I’ve been doing more to produce rather than consume, which is a good start, but it’s hard to imagine reaching a point where I can say that I’ve “arrived”.
Right now, I’d like to give more time to other people and find more ways to interact with people. Work in progress.
This is quite thought-provoking. Let me start by saying a couple things: (1) I am one such enthusiast for the saying "If you don't love yourself, how can you expect others to love you?" and (2) mein bhi apne favorite hoon. But it's a nuanced discussion. Some of your points I agree, others I disagree, and still others I'm somewhere in between.
I don't have time to go through every point in detail, but I'll talk about one point I agree on.
Agree: "Children love themselves unconditionally. They don’t need self affirmations, solo dates or skin care routines. They just need a life to live . . . complete absorption in whatever captures their attention. For them self love isn’t a practice, it’s a side effect of being fully alive."
As older we grow, so do our egos. Overwhelmed by adult responsibilities and stresses and unfulfilled dreams, we become more and more detached from the simple joys of life. Playing with friends. Rolling in the grass. Living in the present moment.
Connect with your inner child. Create space for that inner child. Self-love will come.
Wow! What a thought-provoking essay. I was just listening to a radio show on my drive to work which asked if New Age cultures are a little too focused on the self. Maybe this is a sign that 2025 is the time to look outwards, not inwards.
I felt that you really tied it together with the solo date/solo travel - calling them "self love" is a very shallow label.
I do find myself wondering if you are presenting the destination as the goal. Some people need to build the courage and the time to make interesting mistakes or even engage with life in the same vein as these artistic greats. Training oneself to reflect, look outwards, and take risks is a process - I'd be curious to hear your opinion on how a "beginner" should get started!
The way I see it out inner worlds and outer worlds are connected. No one sees the same world. Your world is different than mine. Our internal compass maps our way in the outer world. It's just the superficial of looking inwards that unsettled me.
I don't know what the destination is here? I feel the essay was more journey oriented like within a process, you live a life that's more than eating, sleeping and 24x7 breath intakes.
Time is limited, I agree. Courage is also hard to come by, that's why who make a difference are so few.
I don't know how a beginner should get started. I wonder if even I have started or not.
Thanks for reading the essay Will, and sharing your thoughts. I appreciate it:)
I agree completely on the concept of perspective.
To be honest, I felt like the destination you outlined was one where someone was exhibiting the list of self-love traits. Clearly, I read it differently! Speaks to the different outer worlds I guess, haha.
I think starting is also relative. But I’d say you have - feels like it requires a certain amount of vulnerability and empathy to put writing in front of other people. It’s a good first step.
"a certain amount of vulnerability and empathy to put writing in front of other people."
I once heard Stephen King say, "there's honesty in fiction as well."
If one doesn't write from the place of truth, it wouldn't resonate on the other end.
Where do you put yourself on this spectrum of journey to destination?
I’d say I’m gonna be on the journey forever, haha. Feels like I’ve been doing more to produce rather than consume, which is a good start, but it’s hard to imagine reaching a point where I can say that I’ve “arrived”.
Right now, I’d like to give more time to other people and find more ways to interact with people. Work in progress.
This is quite thought-provoking. Let me start by saying a couple things: (1) I am one such enthusiast for the saying "If you don't love yourself, how can you expect others to love you?" and (2) mein bhi apne favorite hoon. But it's a nuanced discussion. Some of your points I agree, others I disagree, and still others I'm somewhere in between.
I don't have time to go through every point in detail, but I'll talk about one point I agree on.
Agree: "Children love themselves unconditionally. They don’t need self affirmations, solo dates or skin care routines. They just need a life to live . . . complete absorption in whatever captures their attention. For them self love isn’t a practice, it’s a side effect of being fully alive."
As older we grow, so do our egos. Overwhelmed by adult responsibilities and stresses and unfulfilled dreams, we become more and more detached from the simple joys of life. Playing with friends. Rolling in the grass. Living in the present moment.
Connect with your inner child. Create space for that inner child. Self-love will come.