The joy of hard work

Being 'hard' and 'work', most people dislike the idea of hard work. While I admit that flying kites in lush green fields is fun, I maintain that hard work is a beautiful thing too.

Of course, results are one important factor. But results alone can not make hard work beautiful. In fact, I propose that results do not even contribute to making it so. And no, I am not talking about Gita's message on Karma. That is in an entirely different spirit.

The fact is that there is a purity in hard work, a genuineness. A reflection of single mindedness. A feeling unattainable by any other means. A feeling of usefulness, of satisfaction, of calm. Of joy beneath the calm. Of smile beneath the frown.

Hard work is beautiful for itself, in itself. It is not merely a means to an end. Its worthy of being an end in itself.

But the beauty is often veiled behind the goal. The goal is a more tangible, more understood concept. Thus, though undeserving, goal is often mistaken to be the goal of all hardwork. Indeed, the goal of all hardwork may not be the goal, but it may be hardwork itself. It is with this self-referential hard work that the beauty of hard work decends in front of your eyes, for you to admire and savor.