Great Novels, Ideas, Conversations, & Life

     “To gain access to the life-enriching power (of great novels) requires a great investment in time and attention. Such works cannot be perused lightly, just as we cannot enjoy the benefits of great conversation if we attend to others only superficially and intermittently. To gain the full benefit, we must bring our best powers of perception, feeling, and thought to the text.

     Just as judicious reading can fuel the moral imagination, so great writing has an equally important role to play. For true wisdom lies not in memorizing what others have to say but in learning to express great ideas in our own words and in the living of our own lives. We do not grasp them fully until we have made them our own. Writing, whether in the form of journals, letters, or even manuscripts for publication, can be a worthwhile means of doing so. The discipline required to do so is analogous to the investment required to attain a high level of physical fitness and vitality. There are no shortcuts, but those who make the effort are often richly rewarded.”

Gunderman RB. Writing and being. J Am Coll Radiol 2012; 9(3): 162-3.

Artist: Joanne Hunt CSPWC, SCA    http://www.gallery78.com/