In a recent post, I introduced the following enigmatic epigram from the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus:
Like most of Heraclitus' ideas, this epigram can be understood in a variety of ways. I think the creative strategy here is:
Recognize that things change their value.
Heraclitus is saying is be careful what you strive toward because it just might change its value.
This moral is brought home in a provocative episode of the early 1960s television series The Twilight Zone, entitled "The Rip Van Winkle Caper."
After robbing a bullion train from Fort Knox, four thieves stow their fortunes in gold bricks in a cave and enter suspended animation for one hundred years, certain that they will evade all pursuit.
When they awaken a century later, they find that their plan has worked perfectly except for one problem: when they try to spend their precious metal, they discover that it doesn't have the value they thought it would.
Because of advances in industrial chemical engineering in the intervening years, gold has become a ubiquitous commodity and is actually worth less than its weight in water.
A few questions to think about:
- Will what you're striving for still be valuable in the future?
- Under what circumstances might its value change?
- Might something you now consider worthless on take on value in the future?
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