While reading the editorial page of
the Friday, April 29 issue of The Dayton
Daily News, the headline of David Brooks’ column caught my eye. It
referenced Ernest Hemingway. I started reading.
The Hemingway references accurately
captured the man as I understand him but what really struck me was Mr. Brooks’
reference to a comment he credited to Dorothy Sayers. She once wrote that while
it might be politically correct to state that one does one’s work to serve the
community (I am paraphrasing), that is actually a falsehood. Her argument is
that if you do any type of work to serve the community, that work becomes
untrue, because in essence you are doing it to seek approval. Sayers notes that
if you concentrate on serving the work rather than the community, you end up
serving the community even more.
The self-consciousness disappears
when you do this. Concentrate on the work fully and completely and to the best
of your ability, and by doing so, you are
serving the larger community. It becomes truly, honest work. Don’t make work
simply to accumulate accolades.
Thank you Mr. Brooks for bringing
this to my attention, and thank you Ms. Sayers for your perceptive observation.
I plan to keep this in mind as I go
to the studio. I will dispense with “how am I doing” and simply get on, serving
the work.
