'In headaches and in worry
Vaguely life leaks away,
And Time will have his fancy
To-morrow or today.'
W.H. Auden (1907 – 1973)
I like this quotation from Auden and the following nonsense arose because of it ;-)I am well practised in the art of worrying; I do it all the time, though perhaps not with the painful intensity I exercised in my youth. I haven't the energy or inclination now, or perhaps a little wisdom has seeped into my intelligence and whispered that worrying never solves anything. Nonetheless, I worry. Worse still, I worry if I'm not worrying for I feel that I should always be worrying – it is my forte, perhaps even my raison d'être.
If something untoward occurs about which I did not take occasion to worry, I worry that had I worried it might not have occurred or at least not as adversely. When I have worried about an inopportune event I can take some slight comfort from believing that worrying prepared me and the shock or outcome or result is less startling than it might have been otherwise.
So for me, worry is a necessity though actually I acknowledge that it is an indulgence in the sense that it is the easier option. My family members are accustomed to me telling them, 'You do the work/interview/examination and I'll do the worrying. We'll each do what we're best at.'
Why worry? Mark Knopfler and Dire Straits perform it beautifully!
I'm like you Janice, sometimes I worry that I'm not worrying.
ReplyDeleteWorrying has an omnipotent feel, as if simply by worrying we think we can stop bad things from happening, at least that's my take.
Music like this from dire straits helps put it all in perspective.