A quick update before we begin- I’m in the final stages of editing The Stoic Manual: Meditations on the Art of Living, a collection of 150 practical Stoic meditations covering many problems we deal with in our modern lives. It’ll be released soon and included free for all Annual and Lifetime paid members. Meanwhile, access my other books here.
Reasons Not to Give Up
“Sometimes it’s an act of bravery even to live.” - Seneca
There’s a lot to glean from my favorite painting by Adriaen Coorte called Gooseberries on a Table (1701). See above. It’s a simple painting yeah. There’s no pomp, or theatrics or expensive Tupperware holding the grapes. It’s also quite small actually- measuring 29.7 x 22.8 cm, which is about the size of a printer paper, illuminating mildly translucent and red to pink berries on a dark background. And pleasantly, that’s the point.
The ordinariness of this painting is what’s most charming about it.
He cloned the same concept on various paintings, where he showcased strawberries, shells or asparagus- you know, what we see often but pay little mind to. And just as we do, he mostly went uncelebrated back in his day. But today millions of people have spent countless hours in a museum enjoying the Gooseberries.
His point was that we spend time and resources buying into consumerism and grand events to make life feel worthwhile, yet what we need to keep going is right in our faces. And it’s a sad tragedy that we miss it.
On Art & Its Abundance As Therapy
What’s happening to us also happened in the vast of European history. Many painters got paid by wealthy clients to portray the aura of commanders, epic battles and sacred saints. But Coorte stuck to his boring divine style to help us focus on what matters most.
Marcus Aurelius often reminded himself of the beauty in the foaming mouth of a boar, the cracks on a loaf of bread as we bake it, the splitting open of ripe figs and stalks of ready grain bending the wheat under their weight. His life was in every bit chaotic- talk about pandemics, betrayal by his best friend, death of his children, going to war- but he grounded himself in these tiny ordinary details.
For it’s a mistake to keep digging at a hard problem when you can just choose to look away for a bit. Go for a run in nature. Take a walk by the beach chasing the escaping sun. Watch some funny cat videos. Trust me, it’ll be ok.
‘Unselfing’ is a word that Iris Murdoch coined. She was looking out of a window one day, all angry and muddled with wounded pride when she noticed a rather beautiful kestrel flying by her window. She describes the moment as having helped her get her head out of her ass. She no longer thought of herself or her troubles and there was a sense of relief in that.
There are countless moments like this in your life as well, I believe. Look back to when you had a frustrating day or perhaps the blues were hitting you pretty hard and at this rock bottom you hear a song you haven’t heard in a long time, or you eat a savory meal or you come across a nice flower or you pass by a place with a really cool aesthetic. For a few minutes you feel transported out of yourself. And from this revelation is a reminder you can always tuck tight close to you for when life gets sad and despair feels like the only option available- that whatever agony you’re feeling is not final, this is not the only experience available to you. Undress the veil.
Tiny Reasons To Go On
With that, you won’t ever need a crazy breakthrough to feel better. I know life is bleak enough and it has probably battered your optimism. What I want you to focus on is the little stars of hope twinkling in the darkness. Find these sweet gooseberries in the foliage of an ordinary life and treat each one as a sign to go on- to wake up and try again tomorrow. That’s what will get us out of this.
Seneca, in letter 78 once admitted that he considered committing suicide because he was suffering a lot from his illness. However, he thought about his father, now quite elderly and how he wouldn’t be able to handle the loss of his son. So he decided to live in light of him. Still battling with this situation, he even wrote that, “sometimes it’s an act of bravery even to live.” There’s nothing truer. But he didn’t do it alone. What kept him going, other than his dear father, was reading this beautiful philosophy, hanging out with his friends and discussing poignant ideas with them. He found life in the ordinary.
Even our illustrious painter Van Gogh, once living in an asylum in Saint-Remy, heard that he was going to have a nephew. He found new meaning by painting the renowned Almond Blossom for this child making the early flowering almond tree elegantly illustrate a blossoming new life. It gave him some happiness.
And our young sweet Anne Frank who spent 2 years hiding from the cruel germans in a secret annex often looked out through the attic to see the bright sky, birds and a chest nut tree and often wrote about this scene as we see in her diary given it was the only pleasant thing of the outside world available in her vision.
All this to say that- in the worst of circumstances, enjoying the charm and awe of the beauty available to us can help us persevere what’s needed from us. And resist what harms us. This can take the form of the brown eyes in your spouse, a hot shower you’re looking forward to, a piece of work you want to create, coffee, a concert you’d like to attend, a book by your favorite author, your child or even your hilarious disabled pet.
Some of our problems may need harsh treatment, or the healing power of time. Or maybe precise decisions. Granted. Be patient. Find ways for things to work out. And don’t let pain surprise you. The paintings of Coorte never lost their vibrance or beauty waiting for us to find them and celebrate him 300 years later. Similarly, you’ll find a thing or two to hold on to as you go about your day. Welcome it. Let it penetrate and affect you- give you hope and joy. That’s all you need for now.
This is so important, to be mindful of the ordinary. I think Buddhism philosophy, has some good guidance for living, such as mindfulness. Being present allows you to have the capacity to see the ordinary wonders and miracles around us. If you are in the past or future you aren't looking at now, at what is in front of you to witness of the beauty, joy or wonder just ready to be seen. When we open our eyes, be present and become aware of all the ordinary wonders we take for granted, our lives become extraordinary! It is simply a mindset shift.
Also my favorite motto is "things work out" as you referenced to look for ways for things to work out. Everything does work out, even though it may not be what we had in mind, and could be better!
Such a beautiful article. Thank you.