I was listening to Mary Karr, author of The Art of Memoir, on The Tim Ferriss Show and she mentioned the quote by Cesar A. Cruz (originally attributed to Finley Peter Dunne), “Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable.”
You know when you see a painting, watch a performance, or read a book or a poem and think, “That is my story.” It either comforts you or prompts you to make change. That is why art is so important.
T.S. Eliot said, “The purpose of literature it to turn blood into ink.” Bring the suffering to life so that others may find solace or fuel in the story. How many of us remember that English or Drama teacher, that librarian or guidance councellor, who said something that opened a curtain on a new world and changed the way we moved through it?
Mary Karr also said in the podcast that, “For me, the solution to fear is curiosity and presence. I can’t be terrified and curious at the same time.”
I can’t be terrified and curious. I just love that. I am addicted to lifelong learning and that curiosity removes the fear I might feel when raising my hand in a room full of people. Or admitting I don’t understand. Or questioning the status quo.
May we see or read or hear something today that makes us think. That comforts us. That makes us wonder. That moves us to turn left instead of right. That makes us question where we are and where we are headed.
It’s either fear of something that might happen or embracing everything that does roll our way. The choice is ours. What will we choose?