Anais Nin's dream comes true; she finds a houseboat. It was situated near the Quai d'Orsay and the Tuileries garden, but she moved it up near the Pont Royal. She describes it as homely on the outside and like an opium den on the inside. She fills it with the old furniture from Louveciennes. She intends to have grand and marvelous experiences from living out her dream on the houseboat. It is enchanting.
What a wonderful feeling to want something and dream of something for so long and finally have the dream come true. And after a while, that dream changes and is replaced by a new one. Dreams give us hope, and hope keeps us alive. It is a way of pursuing goals that are of the soul, challenging ourselves, developing our potential.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Sunday, March 18, 2012
August, 1936: Joy
Anais Nin says she looks tired, nervous, struggling to love in a world full of destruction. War is on the mind of everyone, and many have quit working, loving, living. Anais continues to write and do her housekeeping and tries to find or create joy in her life and the lives of others. She believes she can create life around her. She begins to look for a houseboat.
Anais is not the only one who is tired. Henry says, " I am getting old. I have no more desires." I think many of us get to a point in our lives when we feel like we've been everywhere, done everything we wanted to do and have a sense of "now what?" but can't think of an answer to that question. If we are like Anais, we will tap into our imaginations and longings and creativity and never lose hope as we continue to create joy in our lives.
Anais is not the only one who is tired. Henry says, " I am getting old. I have no more desires." I think many of us get to a point in our lives when we feel like we've been everywhere, done everything we wanted to do and have a sense of "now what?" but can't think of an answer to that question. If we are like Anais, we will tap into our imaginations and longings and creativity and never lose hope as we continue to create joy in our lives.
Saturday, March 10, 2012
July, 1936: Individually Perfect World
"We live on top of a crumbling world. The more it crumbles, the more I feel like asserting the possibility of an individually perfect world, personal loves, personal relationships, creation. I may be trying to place an opium mat on top of a volcano. The world in chaos. Panic. Hysteria."
So begins Anais Nin's diary entry from July, 1936, and how relevant it is today as we rebuild lost dreams. Anais believes the suffering of the world can be fixed not by mass movements but individually. She does not believe in politics but in art and creation and relationships.
It's like Stephen Covey's "circle of influence," where we focus our efforts on things we can do something about, things we have direct control over. Our efforts cause our circle of influence to expand, bringing it closer to our "circle of concern," those things we care about. By concentrating on what is important to us as individuals, we can create an individually perfect world.
So begins Anais Nin's diary entry from July, 1936, and how relevant it is today as we rebuild lost dreams. Anais believes the suffering of the world can be fixed not by mass movements but individually. She does not believe in politics but in art and creation and relationships.
It's like Stephen Covey's "circle of influence," where we focus our efforts on things we can do something about, things we have direct control over. Our efforts cause our circle of influence to expand, bringing it closer to our "circle of concern," those things we care about. By concentrating on what is important to us as individuals, we can create an individually perfect world.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
June, 1936: Living, Breathing, Loving
In this entry of her Diary, Anais Nin throws a housewarming party at her new place at 30 Quai de Passy.
She reflects on her trip to Fez, Morocco which she visited without her diary. She now feels able to breathe and love without having to say in her diary that she breathed, she loved.
Gonzolo tells her of the impact she is having on his life. When they met, he was drinking heavily, drifting, impoverished. Now, he drinks less and is deep into the world of politics and wants to live. He credits Anais with giving him this desire to live. What a wonderful feeling it must be to have such a positive influence on a person. Anais believes in giving help individually, not in masses, and wants to lessen the suffering in the world one person at a time.
Henry Miller's Black Spring comes out, dedicated to Anais.
She reflects on her trip to Fez, Morocco which she visited without her diary. She now feels able to breathe and love without having to say in her diary that she breathed, she loved.
Gonzolo tells her of the impact she is having on his life. When they met, he was drinking heavily, drifting, impoverished. Now, he drinks less and is deep into the world of politics and wants to live. He credits Anais with giving him this desire to live. What a wonderful feeling it must be to have such a positive influence on a person. Anais believes in giving help individually, not in masses, and wants to lessen the suffering in the world one person at a time.
Henry Miller's Black Spring comes out, dedicated to Anais.
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