Do with love. Gogh in peace.

Dear Blog Diary,

Love many things. Love many people, many places, every stage in life. I say this simply because anything with love is the truest form of strength. This world can often be cruel. With that, there is nothing more profound than to love, giving our most vulnerable selves, knowing that what or who we love can be taken from us and bring enormous amounts of pain. The irony is that I promise you, you will do nothing in your life better and with more precision than what you do with love.

Vincent Van Gogh created roughly 900 paintings in his life and, formally, only sold one of them. And that was to his friend’s wife. He chased women who didn’t love him, famously with the whole ear thing. He painted potato eaters, irises, sunflowers, stars in the night sky, and everyone hated them. One portrait that he gave as a gift, was later used as a target for archery practice. One was considered so hideous, the individual hung it up to cover a hole in a chicken coop. He died at 37 years old, in a mental institution, broke, unaccomplished, with only his brother by his bedside...after he did a poor job shootings himself in the chest (theories suggest bullies shot him but who knows).

I’m 34 years old and I highly doubt I will create Starry Night caliber by 37. I think many of us get so wrapped up trying to not end up like Van Gogh, this perception of failure. Or we’re chasing to be Van Gogh, this perception of genius.

Simply do, with love. No more no less.

Kind regards,

E