Quote of the Day

Memo to the disorganised:
If my private world is in order, it will be because i am convinced that the inner world of the spiritual must govern the outer world of activity.

We must see come to see ourselves as living in two very different worlds. Our outer or public world, is easier to deal with. Its much more measurable, visible, and expandable. Our outer world consists of work, play, possessions, and a host of acquaintances that make up a social network. Its the part of our existence easiest to evaluate in terms of success, popularity, wealth, and beauty. But our inner world is more spiritual in nature. Here is a center in which choices and values can be determined, where solitude and reflection might be pursued. It is a place for conducting worship and confession, a quiet spot where the moral and spiritual pollution of the times need not penetrate.

The majority of us have been taught to manage our public worlds well. of course, there will always be the undependable worker, the poorly organised homemaker, and the person whose social capabilities are so immature that he becomes a drain on everyone around him. But most of us have learned to take orders, make schedules, and give directions. We know which systems best suit us in terms of work and relationship. We choose proper forms of leisure and pleasure. We have the capability to choose friends and make those relationships work well.

Our public worlds are filled with a seeming infinity of demands upon our time, our loyalties, our money, and our energies. And because these public worlds of ours are so visible, so real, we have to struggle to ignore all their seductions and demands. They scream for our attention and action.

The result is that our private world is often cheated, neglected because it does not shout quite so loudly. It can be effectively ignored for large periods of time before it gives way to a sinkhole-like cave-in...

extract from "Ordering your private world, Gordon Macdonald"