The Duty to Delight
Jun 10th, 2008 by ljkim
Why should “delighting” in something – seeing the good qualities and enjoying something – ever be a “duty”? If something is really delight-worthy, shouldn’t we just do it naturally? Of course… we would naturally appreciate and enjoy good things – that is, unless there were something broken about us (and broken in humanity) that keeps us from being able to appreciate things for what they are…
There are people who are so busy and stressed that they can’t enjoy sitting in the park – or so vain that they can’t enjoy playing catch in the park – or so uncultured that they can’t enjoy listening to a Mozart symphony, or a great novel, or a movie without explosions or car chases… So for us who are members of a broken humanity, enjoying something good can require a little work (sometimes).
But if you think of enjoyment (delight) as a duty, won’t it be fake?
It would be fake only if you think faking-delight is a duty… But the funny thing about setting out to really appreciate something (the classics, or jazz, or wine, etc) is that as you learn to appreciate it – you can actually enjoy it! Shakespeare is a blast, once you understand what’s going on…and the language actually makes it better… A parent who learns to enjoy his kids can actually ENJOY it… A spouse who actually tries to fall back in love with his beloved, can actually delight once again… There’s nothing fake about real enjoyment – even if it starts with a little bit of work. So here’s a question: What kinds of things might it be one’s duty to enjoy?
[About the photo: I was sitting on a plane, minding my own business when I notice there's a Homer Simpson doll in the seat next to me. Taken on Grace's iPhone]
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