Just This One

"Though I am often in the depths of misery, there is still calmness, pure harmony and music inside me. I see paintings or drawings in the poorest cottages, in the dirtiest corners. And my mind is driven towards these things with an irresistible momentum. Art demands dogged work, work in spite of everything and continuous observation. By dogged, I mean in the first place incessant labour, but also not abandoning one's views upon the say-so of this person or that." —Van Gogh, in a letter to his brother Theo The Hague, 21 July 1882

Van Gogh felt keenly the effort and hard work that it took to be creative. However, each time he sat down to create, he didn't let those expectations, concerns or "the say-so of this person or that" stop him. Even if "this or that person" was himself...He focused on what he saw and did the work of creating "just this one".

He didn't give up his artistic vision or over-analyze himself or his past work. He choose to "doggedly" work his way through the creation in front of him at that moment. Just this one. We can clearly see where the practice of "Just this one" got him. I've been thinking about where this practice (whether it be in my artwork, career, relationships, health or lifestyle choices) could take me.

It's worth checking out, don't you think?