I have a pet theory that, when it comes to having a meaningful life, or a meaningful relationship, or a meaningful hobby, time spent doing the meaningful thing is not as important as the occurrence of meaningful moments, which may be brief and fleeting. For example, suppose you have a life of drudgery but it has several dozen very special meaningful moments—that doesn’t seem as bad as a life spent with lots of time dedicated to doing meaningful things, in which nothing really stands out. Or consider a friend you see only once every few years, but each brief meeting is profoundly memorable and special, compared to your friend you see all the time and spend quality time with. Both are valuable but it seems to me you can’t say quantity is more important than quality. (Psychological disclaimer: I’m probably saying this in part because I get too much anxiety about all the drudgery taking up my chance at a meaningful life !!)
I have a pet theory that, when it comes to having a meaningful life, or a meaningful relationship, or a meaningful hobby, time spent doing the meaningful thing is not as important as the occurrence of meaningful moments, which may be brief and fleeting. For example, suppose you have a life of drudgery but it has several dozen very special meaningful moments—that doesn’t seem as bad as a life spent with lots of time dedicated to doing meaningful things, in which nothing really stands out. Or consider a friend you see only once every few years, but each brief meeting is profoundly memorable and special, compared to your friend you see all the time and spend quality time with. Both are valuable but it seems to me you can’t say quantity is more important than quality. (Psychological disclaimer: I’m probably saying this in part because I get too much anxiety about all the drudgery taking up my chance at a meaningful life !!)
This is such a fascinating comment. In some ways, it reminds me of this https://youtu.be/XgRlrBl-7Yg?si=LtA89jx_OcVmX8Xp