I couldn't see passion as a bad thing.
Interpretation
Passion is a positive force that should not be viewed negatively.
In this quote, Joni Mitchell expresses her belief that passion is an essential and valuable aspect of life. Rather than viewing passionate feelings as problematic or negative, she encourages embracing them, suggesting that passion is a driving force for creativity, fulfillment, and authenticity in one's life.
In practice
Use this quote in a motivational speech about pursuing one's dreams.
There's a man who's been out sailing In a decade full of dreams And he takes her to a schooner And he treats her like a queen Bearing beads from California With their amber stones and green He has called her from the harbor He has kissed her with his freedom He has heard her off to starboard In the breaking and the breathing Of the water weeds While she was busy being free
Unlike some of my peers, I haven't really hit a writer's block. When I hit a block I just paint, which is an old crop rotation trick.
This is a nation that has lost the ability to be self-critical, and that makes a lie out of the freedoms.
You wake up one day and suddenly realize that your youth is behind you, even though you're still young at heart.
I have an aversion to being mislabeled. Here's a label I'd accept: I'm an 'individual.' I'm someone who can't follow, and doesn't want to lead.
What I do is unusual: chordal movements that have never been used before, changing keys and modalities mid-song.
Be discreet in all things, and so render it unnecessary to be mysterious about any.
Remind yourself, in whatever way is personally meaningful, that it is not in your best interest to reinforce thoughts and feelings of unworthiness. Even if you've already taken the bait and feel the familiar pull of self-denigration, marshal your intelligence, courage, and humor in order to turn the tide. Ask yourself: Do I want to strengthen what I'm feeling now? Do I want to cut myself off from my basic goodness? Remind yourself that your fundamental nature is unconditionally open and free.
When I write, I feel like an optometrist, constantly flipping between lenses and asking, 'Is this better? Is this?' Slowly, the work comes into focus.
Forgiveness is for yourself because it frees you. It lets you out of that prison you put yourself in.
Sometimes attaining the deepest familiarity with a question is our best substitute for actually having the answer.
The greatest of follies is to sacrifice health for any other kind of happiness.
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