Where Are We Headed?

It’s a blessing that we haven’t a clue. 

We like to think of life as an arrow in flight. We know where we’ve been, which presumably points toward where we are going. The problem is that’s usually wrong. The future doesn’t come from the past, and we forget to read the fine print.

“Past performance is no guarantee of future results.”

Life is like a ball bouncing down the stairs, picking up speed along the way. There’s no telling what it might careen off of or where it will end up.

Economic forecasting was an important aspect of my career. Do you know how to make a really good forecast? Forecast often!

Most of my forecasts were wrong. Over the years, I found that what I did to positively influence my future was way more important than correctly guessing what might happen. Recently, I was reminded of that.

One of the musical artists I follow is Nick Cave of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. I’m not all that familiar with their music, but I follow Cave’s blog called The Red Hand Files. You should Google it. In the blog, Cave answers questions posed by his worldwide fan base. Many of the questions are deeply personal. He answers them with care and unflinching honesty, which often provides insight to a broader audience. Here are two recent examples:

“My muses have left me, and I have lost all motivation to create as a film and music maker. Have you ever felt alien to yourself?”

–Tam, Cape Town, South Africa

“Every time I set foot in my studio…I crumble with pathetic and flaccid paralysis. I don’t know how to reconcile making art in a world made of war and cruelty. How do you create in this environment?” 

–Dan, Syndey, Australia

Below (heavily edited for brevity) are Cave’s answers to those questions: 

First, to Tam,

“We are artists and we labour in the service of others. It is not something we do only if and when we feel motivated…Does an ordinary adult go to work only if they feel in the mood? Do doctors? Do labourers? Do teachers? Do taxi drivers? We are duty-bound to do our job”

…..And then to Dan, 

“The idea that you can’t paint because the world is ‘made of war and cruelty’ has to be the lamest and most faint-hearted excuse not to work I have ever heard. Yes, the world is sick, and yes, it can be cruel, but it would be a whole lot sicker and a whole lot crueler if it were not for the beauty-makers.”

It’s tough out there today. Maybe we’re headed for even tougher times. But that’s not the point. The point is to be a “beauty-maker.” Which means to get up every morning and make a contribution towards pushing the future in the right direction.

I got to where I was going in life, even though I had no idea where that was. The same thing is true for everyone. Cave’s blog touched a nerve.  His answer may appear callous, but it demonstrates the tough love needed at the present time. 

Where are we headed? 

No one knows! But that doesn’t relieve any of us from the responsibility to make the world a better place.

I have no idea where I’m headed; I’m just hoping it takes a good while to get there and that I contribute to beauty along the way!

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