“Satisfaction is the death of desire” remains one of the life lessons that I’ve found to be quite true. In this sense, I must confess that I’ve found it to be true — with a catch; I’ve personally found it to be true, but do not feel that the statement is all-encompassing or immune to deviation and/or changes. In this respect, I’ve found quite a few situations that prove this statement to be quite true; the ice cream doesn’t taste as good on the last bite as the first, nor does the lady. The large catch behind this idea that I have yet to discover is the instance where satisfaction does not bring short death to desire, but fulfillment and continuation of desire. In this respect, I’ve found it quite hard to find things that do not lose their appeal once the self has indulged on them. From people to pancakes, we’re quite fickle beings.
I can’t say this is the optimal case. In the case of marriage, it would be a short-lived path for both individuals to travel if they kept up with this mindset; each deciding that once they had quenched their ‘thirst’ for each other, that it was no longer suitable to find mutual desire. This makes for a terrible relationship that ought not to be admired, nor enviable.
On the flip side, we find instances where this ideology is quite suitable for successful living. Were goals to be met and not find a point of satiation, one would simply dwell on the present circumstances and state of existence in a manner that is not healthy. One of the most critical points of my life-to-date successes (I cringe at using this word, yet cannot deny that I have had a few) is that I do not allow myself to dwell on the moment for much longer than an hour; essentially, as long as it takes me to write a blog that captures the essence of how I feel. Once that’s done, it’s off to the next goal and accomplishment.
Earlier this year, I set out to make a relatively sizable amount of income in a 10 week period (OSU is on the academic quarter system) and I was able to meet this goal. As soon as I found satisfaction of that goal, I immediately sought to earn that same amount of income in 30 days, which I also accomplished in June. In light of my inconsistencies, I’m relatively predictable. Immediately after meeting this goal, a blog was written to capture the moment and I immediately set out to discover and conquer a new benchmark.
One can see how this standard of living could create a system that would appear to contradict with itself. Fully believing that realization of a certain goal can poison it, while also fully believing it is possible to meet one goal that will not poison, but grow sweeter with time. The difficult part is that in each of us lies a human heart and mind. We have inadequacies and shortcomings that often would be solved if only we could think systematically and without the flaw of raw emotion, feelings, and memories. There’s a reason I really, really dislike looking at old photo albums.
Once again, we find ourselves in a moral quandary where we must decide whether or not to be human…or perfect.
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