“Spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time”

by | Jan 25, 2024 | Blog

Have you ever let something spoil because you were saving it for a special occasion? Like cheese or a baked good?

Even a particularly gorgeous piece of fruit?

Maybe it’s not as common as I think, but this is something my parents (whom I love and adore) instilled in me. Something which I’ve had to reprogram:

The idea that “special” things should be saved for “special” times.

But the reality is that the most (and only) special time is, essentially, now!

Nothing else is guaranteed.

Obviously, I’m not suggesting eating all the things, all at once. (Nor doing all the things, which, in case it wasn’t obvious, is the analogy I’m working toward.)

But this quote from Annie Dillard’s “The Writing Life” (brought to my attention by Austin Kleon) is how I hope to live forever more:

“One of the things I know about writing is this: spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time. Do not hoard what seems good for a later place in the book or for another book; give it, give it all, give it now. The impulse to save something good for a better place later is the signal to spend it now. Something more will arise for later, something better. These things fill from behind, from beneath, like well water.”

She’s talking about writing, but I think it applies to all good things—especially good ideas.

Don’t save it for later. Use it now!

Who knows what goodness will come into your life because you did?

Giving it all away daily,
James