“Every day we slaughter our finest impulses. That is why we get a heartache when we read those lines written by the hand of a master and recognize them as our own, as the tender shoots which we stifled because we lacked the faith to believe in our own powers, our own criterion of truth and beauty. Every man, when he gets quiet, when he becomes desperately honest with himself, is capable of uttering profound truths. We all derive from the same source. there is no mystery about the origin of things. We are all part of creation, all kings, all poets, all musicians; we have only to open up, only to discover what is already there.”
~ Henry Miller, Sexus: The Rosy Crucifixion I
Notes:
- Photo: Paul Apal’kin via Newthom. Quote: Thank you Beth @ Alive on All Channels
- Prior “Lightly child, lightly” Posts? Connect here.
- Post Title & Inspiration: Aldous Huxley: “It’s dark because you are trying too hard. Lightly child, lightly. Learn to do everything lightly. Yes, feel lightly even though you’re feeling deeply. Just lightly let things happen and lightly cope with them.”
Desperate self-honesty…if we dare. And then if we dare to admit.
“when he gets quiet…if we dare…” Yes…
“…because we lacked the faith to believe in our own powers…” The bane of every creative. Mustering the courage to put it out there, always the struggle….
“The Bane….” Right there…
‘We all derive from the same source’ and yet, we spend our lives thinking we are less?
Exactly. What a conundrum…
The truth…always there, waiting to be uncovered. Courage.
And then, Acceptance…
I’m guessing this is addressed to those who actually examine their lives. It seems like that species grows ever smaller.
Not in this little mind on my shoulders. 🙂
I love this!!!
It’s just that easy…”…discover what is already there.”
Smiling. Yes, just that easy. Thanks Cristi.
For the last week, I’ve been sitting at my dying father’s bedside with my mother at a hospice center in Maine. As you can imagine, it has given me an uncommonly long space to think. I’ve watched my father’s face soften as the emotions of a lifetime leave his body. He looks oddly young, like a blank state. Our choices shape and contort the body. Every time we slaughter our finest impulses we deform and convolute our ourselves both inside and out.
Wow Elizabeth. You froze me in my tracks. Yes…yes we do. Thanks for sharing.
True, though Miller himself was a hedonist and a bit confused. Still, it does not mean he didn’t possess kernels of wisdom 😉 Great photo, btw 😉
What amazing intel, didn’t really that…Thanks Bela.
Don’t mention it. I’m a virtual treasure trove of useless information 😉
FUNNY!
I’m not sure how to articulate my reaction to this post. I’m drawn back to read it again, again and once again. It is resonating deeply but I can’t pinpoint that source. Maybe it was the very first sentence that rings so true: “Every day we slaughter our finest impulses.” ….
It was the hook form me too Mary. (The first line)
Sometimes slaughtering our impulses makes us our own worse enemy. There will come a day when we wish we hadn’t!
Truth!