Monet lived at Giverny for the last forty years of his life, and when he moved in he was already a successful painter. He used his time in the village to craft the gardens at Giverny, which formed the subject matter of his famous water-lily paintings, among others. The gardens themselves are spacious and present a changing aspect as the viewer and the sun move through them. If I have ever been in such a lush space with such diversity of colors and odors, I cannot remember it. I passed through the "dry" gardens and water-lily gardens for a total of around three hours just to soak it all in, and am still processing the truth that I learned from that day:
When you know your passion, and use your whole spirit and whole knowledge to drive yourself toward it, then you have the potential to create a legacy that endures and improves the world in a way that no one else could achieve.
This is a lesson I have learned again and again over the past year, from experience with Tesla Works, articles in Leadership class, and my own musings on prominent figures in history and my own life. Even the experiences I am gaining on this trip have reinforced it, from the Musée de la Magie, to Einstein's sketch-proof of relativity, to my research on Nadia Boulanger.
Last Wednesday, I set out alone after our group visit to the Musée Rodin to find a museum I had discovered earlier. This museum hid behind a conspicuous red storefront, and housed artifacts from the early days of illusion and legerdemain. At the Musée de la Magie, I found mechanisms and experiments from the early days of modern magic, each of which was an example of a person who supported their dream of astounding audiences by putting their knowledge of physics, chemistry, carpentry, or psychology to use in crafting "magic tricks" to fool the eye and amaze the viewer. Their contraptions are a testament to the unique mixture of their creativity and their perspective to create something novel.
Likewise, Einstein created an explanation of relativity that fit in the space on the back of a napkin. He took the skills he had learned from a classical physics education and used his personal desire to remove the discrepancies in modern theory to break through the laws and theories that had previously misinterpreted reality. Because of his drive and passion, humanity gained a clearer understanding of the universe and a century of novel innovation.
Finally, in researching the eminent musical teacher Nadia Boulanger, one of the most central tenets of her teaching style is that she never tries to tell a student how to write music. Instead, she only accepts students who burn with the desire to produce music despite all discouragement, and works with them to draw forth the "ultimate qualities" that make them an individual. As the person whom many claim had the greatest impact on music in the 20th century, Nadia knew the lesson that was reinforced on me at Giverny. Her skills at composition were not perfect, but her encyclopedic knowledge and devotion to discipline made her an ideal teacher, so for more than fifty years she used her talents to better the world.
The lesson I posted above is one of the greatest truths I have learned so far in college. Through my student groups and conversations, I am trying to find my passions, expand my knowledge, and fire up my spirit for some great task, but I know that I am not there yet. This is a process that must be active, and must be voluntary - I am the one who will have to do the work in the end if I want to make a unique impression - to "be awake" as Nadia Boulanger would put it. I have known this truth instinctively since at least January, but with luck seeing so many of humanity's geniuses in one city will push me to be more thoughtful and intentional in pursuing it. Only time will tell.
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