A friend wrote with the idea that quality music and literature is marked by crisis, desperation and hardship. I agree. It’s like life. A roller coaster only works if it scares you. A smooth ride is not a happy ride. Surviving the incredible drops and upside-down loops makes it more exciting and more fun. In literature and music, I’m convinced that the sadness and conflict bring a sense of fulfillment, satisfaction and even happiness when they are resolved at the end of the story. A story with no problem isn’t worth reading.
So what about life? If it’s the extreme moments (both up and down) that make the rest of experience bearable, then why don’t more people seek out opportunities for poverty and sickness and unexpected trauma? Yes, we hate going through these kinds of experiences. But it is just such storms that give us perspective, leaving us more satisfied and fulfilled at the end than we were at the beginning.
I want to live adventurously. What about you?
A roller coaster only works if it scares you.