Bringing Things About

“Men give me some credit for genius,” said Alexander Hamilton. “All the genius I have lies in this: When I have a subject in hand, I study it profoundly. Day and night it is before me. I explore it in all its bearings. My mind becomes pervaded with it. Then the effort to call fruit of genius. It is the fruit of labor and thought.”

“There is no line of world—business or professional—”says a recent observer, “where anyone can hope to gain any degree of success without intensive work.” In a letter in 1875 Tchaikovsky wrote an impressive comment on the creative process: “very often one must first overcome laziness and lack of inclination,” he said. “Then there are various impediments. Sometimes victory comes easily, sometimes inspiration entirely escapes me. But I believe it is the duty of an artist never to submit, for laziness is a strong human trait, and nothing is more harmful to an artist than to let laziness get the better of him. One cannot afford to sit and wait for inspiration; she is a guest who does not visit the lazy but comes to those who call her.”

This is true not only of the artist, but also of the artisan, the laborer, the student, the seeker after truth, the pursuer of every duty and very endeavor. The Lord does not ordinarily offer unearned or unsought handouts. “Seek, and ye shall find.” “Men should be anxiously engaged in good cause, and do many things of their own free will…” The finding of truth, the improving of talents, the increase of competence, the enlarging of experience—adding to understanding—all that pertains to improvement must be sought, prayed for, worked for, and persisted in and pursued. Inspiration—competence, accomplishment, even conviction—”does not visit the lazy but becomes to those who call her.”