“I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day.”
What a beautiful and humorous summation of the paradox we all face!
I love this guy; author of Charlotte’s Web and Stuart Little and an eccentric man who struggled at times with anxiety and depression. Like most writers it was hard for him to determine when a piece of writing was actually “done.” (The bane of rewriting for all of us, that one.) But unlike most writers, he would sometimes panic after slipping a finished manuscript into the mailbox and go to the Postmaster General at the Post Office begging to have it back. This anecdote always makes me feel a little more accepting of my own writing fears.
For a quick peek inside the brilliant, funny, and deeply humane mind of the man, here’s a brief letter he wrote for the editor of Charlotte’s Web:
E.B. White’s Fantastic Letter About Why He Wrote “Charlotte’s Web”.
The Odd and Unmentionable 
A book is a sneeze? I never quite thought of a book as a sneeze. But then, I did not read Charlotte’s Web till I was an adult. Perhaps that is why I confess to be an arachnophobe.
I’m trying to be a recovering arachnophobe, but it is a difficult journey.
Happy new year, Dia!
Oh!! So love your writing Dia!!!
Enjoying the world and improving it are not necessarily mutually exclusive activities. An obvious example is being part of an appreciative audience at a concert. A more subtle example is that if you give off happy vibes while doing something, those around you may feel the uplift and be re-energized.
Great insight!