Lesser Evil? Or Greater Good?

There is no situation in which I cannot choose the greater good rather than the lesser evil. It can be PRECISELY the same situation, the same photographable outcome. But the difference is in how I feel about it. It might realistically be very challenging, requiring extraordinary focus. But considering that the meaning of life, from animal to saint, is to avoid pain and seek joy, it seems to me that it is an important skill for those of us who seek to be awake, aware, adult human beings.

Otherwise…we are telling people that pain rules the world. That’s fine but IMO an immature philosophy. Children must be forced to do their homework, on pain of lost privileges or other punishments. Pain on one end, and reward on the other. If they get good grades, we love them, praise them, take them for ice cream or buy that bike.

And…eventually, they begin to take PRIDE in getting those grades. And see homework and study as a means to that end. And then…the moment all parents pray for, they find something INSIDE THEM that loves learning. They DEFINE themselves as a learner. And they read, learn, integrate, explore, invent, and teach out of sheer love of the process.

Money is secondary — its fun, but those who make a ton of money, but earn it doing something they hate, are hollow men and women. Better to do something you LOVE, with a modest income that puts a roof over your head and food on the table, living surrounded by people you love and good books, than a million dollars a month alone and miserable.