The Modern Romantic’s Manifesto
It all begins with an idea.
It seems everyone, despite their resentment of it, senses the emptiness behind the trappings of success — or at least the pursuit of it. The hollow cycle of constant improvement, the need to be the best, the endless comparison to a world that always seems better or worse in every conceivable way. Viewed from this angle, life can feel like a dystopian nightmare.
And yet, there is a deliciously masochistic streak in all of us, pulling us back for more. The daydream of former paramours, erstwhile friends, and spurners — compelled to witness your success spilling across their morning news. The chance encounter with a perfect benefactor, captivated by your work and your talents, at exactly the right moment. Yes, it is sinful to delight in such decadent fantasies. And yet, delight we do.
It is easier to imagine the system has not yet noticed our moment, rather than face the possibility that it may never come. But perhaps the moment itself is vain. Perhaps we have strayed far from what gives life its true satisfaction.
I believe the way through this is not in chasing recognition, nor in the illusions of success. It is in reclaiming the art of living: to notice, to create, to savor, to feel. To turn life itself into a work of poetry, a philosophy soft and enduring, for the modern romantic within us all.