“we would rather be ruined than changed” ~ W.H. Auden
We would rather be ruined than changed
We would rather die in our dread
Than climb the cross of the moment
And let our illusions die.
~ W.H. Auden
Took this photo in Cambridge, England inside a spot on Jesus Lane.
Beautiful marriage of photo to poem. I especially like that the light is not at the top of the stairs, but in the middle. There is new light all along the path, not just at its end.~lucy
“If you don’t change, then what’s the point of anything happening to you?” ▸ Couplandisms
thank you for stopping by & more food for thought. : ) @vivlorasis–we are always changing, so i don’t think the “if” is accurate. it’s only a matter of how intentionally, in which direction, and for how long…in that much we have a choice…but change is inevitable I suppose. @lucy–oh what a wonderful thought: new light all along the path. : ) thanks for that.
Well, yes… in a sense you are perfectly right. Change is constant; but only in a sense. You see, as we’re growing older our ‘possible versions’ (i.e. versions of ourselves in various life-contexts) are becoming less and less; and, eventually, we are what we are. Think about it; a child is a whole spectrum of possibilities (a child might be this; but it might, as well, turn out to be that or that or…). A child is really changing day by day. On the contrary, an adult is an adult, i.e. a grown up actuality out of the certain set of –unfulfilled– possibilities. This is what we usually call maturity; but maturity is very tricky a concept; because maturity is another –probably flattering– name for rigidness. Now, if we are talking about grown up persons, then we have to earn every single day the preservation of our flexibility. Otherwise we are not changing; we are simply aging. All I am trying to say is that after a certain age we can’t take change for granted; because change is one thing; and the rise and the decline of our particular existences is quite another. The latter is certain; the former is always a challenge. So, paraphrasing the words of D. Coupland, I would say that if we don’t keep on changing, instead of simply aging, then what’s the point of anything changeful happen to us? Thank you for the fertile response to my previous comment!