Composing a Life

University Lecture Series: Journeys

In an essay called "Composing a Life", Mary Catherine Bateson, who wrote a book of the same name, writes, 

"An artist takes ingredients that may seem incompatible, and organizes them into a whole that is not only workable, but finally pleasing and true, even beautiful. As you get up in the morning, as you make decisions, as you spend money, make friends, make commitments, you are creating a piece of art called your life…"

"Music is an art in which you create something that happens over time, that goes through various transitions over time. Looking at your life in this way, you have to look at the change that occurs within a lifetime – discontinuities, transitions, and growth of various sorts – and the artistic unity, like that of a symphony with very different movements, that can characterize a life…" . 

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If life is painting a painting or composing music, then CLiCs identify the fundamental media which we must become thoroughly skilled in working with.