Eudaimonia

You know those people who constantly manage to be so unfazed and strong under pressure? The people who can trip over their own feet only to skillfully roll over in a front tuck and smoothly recover? The people who can maintain their composure under duress; those who have their shit together?

Those people who have a perfect morning routine locked down?

6:00am: Wake up and do some hot Vinyasa yoga
7:00am: Do a cold plunge and meditate in the snow
7:10am: Coat the bottom of the bath with Epsom salt and take a shower
7:30am: Perform an American Psycho skincare routine
7:35am: Set up lavender essential oil diffuser
7:40am: Whip out the Chemex and brew a coffee
7:50am: Jot down the gratitudes and goals of the day
8:00am: Look down on the rest of us peons (jk, they’re too good for that)

They’re ostensibly Patrick Batemans with their carefully curated regimens, but Patrick Bateman’s just the poser’s idea of an equanimous individual; habits are only one component of the unflappable person - the real key is one’s mental fortitude. So you know the kind of people I’m talking about though, right? The gods who overshadow the rest of us mere mortals? The Zens? The bona fide ADULTS??

While they might annoyingly lug around “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle everywhere as their personal Bible and preach his good word till the cows come home, there’s no denying that they often radiate an authenticity and an optimism that is seldom found. To be clear, I have a mountain of admiration for those folks, because what they do seems so hard to me and they make it look so effortless. They have this incredible level-headedness and mental robustness I strive toward, as well as daily habits that are damn on point. Despite their hardships, they’re able to maintain a well of calm and composure, finding something - anything - of comfort and solace to bask in. I’ve gone through many trials and have found many losses in my daily life. Being responsible is hard. Being resilient is hard. Being patient is hard. Being consistent is hard. But I suppose no one ever really thinks achieving happiness is easy.

UPDATE: I actually found someone who brought “The Power of Now” to a doughnuttery/diner. WILD. They exist, I’m telling you! Check the proof!

I wanna have that! I wanna be like that! I have an Aristotelian dream of being my own virtuous person. But I feel like right now I am decidedly NOT that. I’m pretty messy, scatter-brained, and easily put down in the dumps. I’m flighty when developing good habits and capricious when it comes to my commitments. Hell, I still forget my apartment keys, and I’ve misplaced so many Burt’s Bees chapsticks that I’ve probably spent a small fortune in a feeble attempt to refresh my ever-emptying stock. BUT! I still wanna try to be a bit better every day, because despite my regular failures, I have to remember that I ought to acknowledge and celebrate my successes, no matter how tiny or fleeting they may be. Like hey, even though I might’ve torn my apartment apart wondering where the hell my keys are (despite having been absent-mindedly holding them for the past half-hour like a freaking idiot), at least I did my first crochet stitch earlier today.

I suppose writing is a good way to untangle and air out the sentiments I have about myself - to transform them from amorphous feelings into concrete words. I’m not one to get lost in breathwork, but writing? I find writing to be an incredibly meditative practice (I’m rusty though >.<). If sharing my writings makes even one person feel less alone in their struggles, then my words will have served a greater purpose. I can only hope that comes to fruition. This year, I want to embrace progress over perfection, one misplaced chapstick at a time. :)

I made a snippet of Aristotle’s virtue ethics using Goldilocks! Yum, ethics!

This is just one aspect of what Aristotle means to be a virtuous person…

With the exception of gazpacho, cold soups ain’t it.

Every day should be a beach day. But a hot day with a hot soup also ain’t it.

WE DID IT, LET’S GO! POGGERS! Ding ding ding! Jackpot! Yosh! Now THAT’S what I’m talking about!!!

Notes:

I grew up in a household where I was encouraged to paint my life as perfect as possible. Protecting one’s reputation is a staple virtue commonly found in Asia, too often obsessively so. Yet, chasing the lie of perfection is an infuriatingly Sisyphean task, for who is ever 100% without fault?

面子. 面子. 面子.

Saving “face”. Losing “face”.

It’s such a dumb concept and a source of undue anxiety. I don’t want to be treading over metaphorical eggshells; I’d rather stomp the everlasting shit out of them if anything. I don’t know definitively what I want, but I know I want to be genuinely happy. This isn’t a blog with a grand mission - just a space where I can be unabashedly me. I’m not a guru. I’m just someone, like many others, fumbling through life.

Bonus:

I don’t draw much, but I was pretty compelled to after I wanted to create an ELI5 (explain like I’m 5) way to show a little bit of what Aristotle says in Nicomachean Ethics. He says that we should strive to strike a golden mean, a good, balanced disposition between two extremes - one being of deficiency, the other of excess. This can be applied not just to finding courage amidst the extremes of cowardice and rashness, but also finding generosity in yourself between the extremes of parsimony and overindulgence. There are many ideal dispositions - modesty, temperance, truthfulness - the list goes on and on. Feeling and acting with these golden means are keys to being a virtuous person.

…I kinda regret making my Goldilocks analogy with soup - the normal tale uses porridge. Dang, maybe I should have just used congee in my illustrations…

Anyway, this is my first foray into sharing writings, drawings, creative works, blah blah blah with others. Hope you enjoy! <3

-Schmooples