I stumbled across this image today—quoting the words of the fascinating Anais Nin—on the extra-fabulous Brain Pickings, which always features smart wonders to think about, and so deserves your attention (and your money).
Turns out, the lettering was done by Lisa Congdon, a really inspiring person and artist (artist person?) whom I had the pleasure of hearing speak at Camp Mighty—she told the story of basically leaping into her career as an artist, and not waiting until it all made sense. And yes, it’s worked out fantastically for her. Her confusions—or at least some of them; I’m sure there are more—have become clear.
It’s a brilliant phrase, and the kind of sentence you can crawl into, walking up and down its interior staircases, checking out all the different levels on which it is operating. It reminded me of another beautiful script image I cherish—maybe even still a tad more than this. “Trust Your Struggle.” Wait, here, I’ll find the photo:
See how it even reads differently in the script? It’s like an aria, an open-throated call for grace.
Adore.
This is all we can do, and all we must do. Live the confusion, trust the struggle, and reach for clarity even if it is forever at just a fingertip’s distance away.
I never doubted it, but yet another data point to prove that we are sisters of the heart: http://www.adesignsovast.com/2012/02/trust-your-struggle/
Lovely. I admit, the airy quality of the cursive helps deliver the message in a more digestible fashion.
Years ago I heard another variation, something like “How many times must we learn our lessons? As many as it takes.”
I remember feeling a sort of peace in reading that.
You have No Idea how much the anais and the trust your struggle were welcomed this early morn on t’other Coast!
Lots of crAzY head thoughts about the Future were throwing their weight around
Hope to see your beautiful spirit in LA at some point.
Waving but not drowning
Go, Gloria, go!!
“You live out the confusions until they become clear” — sounds to me like the essence of one of the most important messages I carried away from your book. You phrased it slightly differently but I tend to think you were the one who introduced me to the concept — even if it finds renewed expression through old and new voices.