Chapter 5.1 Sloth and Apathy
Sloth and Apathy
“Diligence overcomes difficulties, sloth makes them. ” Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American Statesman/Inventor
Sloth refers to laziness … being uninspired, unproductive. In the simple form, this negative “sin” can be offset with enthusiasm and zeal. Sloth is an emotion of the present. It is what it is today (and perhaps yesterday.)
Apathy is a little different, being more of a detachment to your surroundings, a refusal to accept that you are a working part of a larger whole, whether it be at work, in your local community, or as a member of the world. To be apathetic is to not believe in yourself, that you assume that your daily contributions don’t matter much. Nope, I can’t make a difference. Sloth can be a great personal attribute in achieving major apathy.
Sloth and Apathy lie at the bottom of the gorge, in the mucky, dark swampland of Negativity. The first step in climbing to the Plateau of Positive+ is to get one’s feet out of the mud.
To climb out of the mud will require a bit more energy than wallowing in Sloth and Apathy (self-pity also lives in the muck.) Clean up a bit and move, move, move. Taking the first steps out of the muck will provide a direction. From here you have to keep moving. Not acting at all will result in sliding back in the muck. Keep trudging … the first steps out are the hardest. The choice is … Pigs or Pos+.
“You may never know what results come from your action. But if you do nothing, there will be no result.” Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948), Indian Philosopher***
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