The Pillow Book of Prudence . . . Part Eight
What motivates one: Realising that one is getting older and that time is getting less. Opening the curtains on a day when the sky stretches limitless and blue, unmarked by cloud. Being envious: envying people of great accomplishment can urge one to attempts of accomplishment oneself. Challenges: the best motivator of all. Good reviews. Having a good night’s sleep.
What doesn’t motivate one: Fear: it blinkers one, blocking achievement. Windy days: how can one garden when one’s ears are blown off? Frustration: I’m female, enough said. Waiting for an assessment of one’s work. Cooking for one. Having a bad night’s sleep.
In this middle period of the seventh month, the government is about to call a national election. Once more, after a provincial election not long since, we must face dreary portrait posters on trees, egomaniacal promises that will be broken, our favourite viewing interrupted by advertisements that are all the same, from parties that one couldn’t slip a piece of paper between. One can be forgiven for being jaded. Xenophobia shall raise its head from an argument that we all thought died in the age of enlightenment (the 70’s). I walked today with my dogs and watched other people walking and noticed their predilection for black clothes (again, sigh) and I have decided that perhaps they feel the weight of right-wing idiocy as much as I do. But ever hopeful, I wear a bright blue anorak because it pays to believe in common sense and brighter things.
Ah, beautiful, sharp, and intelligent as always. I love these Pillow BookeEntries!
Parden my typo. It’s first thing in the morning here!
….and spelling.
Of course . . . but perhaps not such a mistake. It is an e-entry!
And your talking to someone who spelled diminutive as diminuitive!
Thank you, Patricia.
I didn’t object to ‘diminutive’ because it was spelled wrong – I think it means ‘short’, not ‘small’. It sounded like Lalita came from a family of midgets.
OMG (how I hate these abbreviations, like LOL which I loathe with a passion. May have to do a Pillow Book on it) but anyway, OMG (sigh), I didn’t think at all about the alternate meanings of the word.
Another beautiful, inspirational, just all around fascinating part Prue! 🙂
Time is very motivating- especially watching it fly by. Fear on the other hand is paralyzing, instead of moving us forward, it makes us freeze…
Thank you, Lua. Indeed time flies . . . amazing to think we are in the middle of the month past the middle of the year. And as to fear: ‘what doesn’t kill us must only make us stronger.’
I share your feelings on elections. I really do.
Such a waste of time, money and good clean air, don’t you think!
Good to have you back!
In fact, I was thinking about you last weekend. I was on a train, sitting next to a group of Aussie men. And one of them was a farmer who worked mostly with sheep!
They were drinking crappy beer. And when they switched to the better stuff, they were mockingly miffed that I hadn’t told them to switch beers earlier. I recommended a bar to them. I don’t know if they ever made it.
Anyway, just thought I’d share that. 🙂
If they are dinky-di Aussies and you gave them the name of a good bar, you bet they’d find it! Thanks TFI, good to see you too!