[In this letter Vincent in his haste omits the “Dear
Theo.”]
I have been thinking over what we were discussing, and the
saying sprang to mind, `Nous sommes aujourd'hui ce que nous
étions hier.' [We are today what we were yesterday] That
does not mean that one must stand still and may not try to
improve oneself, on the contrary, it is a compelling reason for
doing so and for being glad to do so. But to be true to the
saying, one must not backslide, and once one has started to
look at things freely and openly, one must not face about or
stray.
Those who said: “We are the same today as we were
yesterday,” were “honnêtes hommes”
[honest men], as is apparent from the constitution they drew
up, which will remain for all time and of which it has been
well said that it was written “avec le rayon d'en haut et
d'un doigt de feu.” [With a ray of light from on high and
a fiery finger”].
It is a good thing to be an “honnêtes homme” and to
try increasingly to be one, partially and wholly, and one does
well to understand that this entails being an “homme
intéreur et spirituel.” [An inward and spiritual
man].
He who is firmly convinced he is one of their band will
always go about his business quietly and calmly, never doubting
that all must end well. There once was a man who went to church
and asked: “Can it be that my ardour has deceived me,
that I have taken a wrong turning and managed things badly? Oh!
if only I could be rid of this doubt and know for certain I
shall come out victorious and succeed in the end.” And
then a voice answered him: “And if you were certain, what
would you do then? Act now as if you were certain and you will
not be disappointed.” Then the man went on his way, not
unbelieving but believing, and returned to his work no longer
doubting or wavering.
As for being an `homme intéreur et spirituel' might
one not be able to develop into one through knowledge of
history in general and of certain individuals from all ages in
particular, from the history of the Bible to that of the
Revolution and from the Odyssey to the books of Dickens and
Michelet? And could we not learn something from the work of
such men as Rembrandt and from Breton's Mauvaises Herbes or
Millet's The Hours of the Day, Le
Bénédicité by de Groux or Brion, or The
Conscript by de Groux (or else by Conscience) or his
Apothécaire or The Large Oaks, by Dupré, or even
by Michel's mills and sandy plains?
It is by continually holding fast to these thoughts and
deeds that we are filled with a good leaven at the last, that
of being sorrowful yet always rejoicing, which will become
apparent when our lives have come to fruition, bearing the
fruits of good works.
Le rayon d'en haut does not always shine upon us and may
well be hidden behind clouds, but without that light a man
cannot live and is worth nothing and can do no good, and those
who claim that man can live without faith in that higher light
and need not trouble to acquire it, are sure to have their
hopes dashed.
We have talked a good deal about our duty and how we may
attain the right goal, and we have properly concluded that our
first objective must be to find a specific position and a
profession to which we can wholly devote ourselves. And I
believe that we also agreed on this point, viz. that one must
pay particular attention to the end, and that a victory gained
after a whole life of work and effort is better than one gained
with greater dispatch.
Anyone who lives an upright life and experiences real
difficulty and disappointment and yet is not crushed by them is
worth more than one for whom everything has always been plain
sailing and who has known nothing but relative prosperity. For
who are the most obviously superior to us? Those who merit the
words: “Laboureurs, votre vie est triste, laboureurs,
vous souffrez dans la vie, laboureurs, vous êtes
bien-heureaux,” [Labourers, your life is sad, labourers,
your life is full of suffering, labourers, you are blessed]. It
is they who bear the marks of “toute une vie de lutte et
de travail soutenu sans flêchir jamais.” [a whole
life of struggle and labour borne unflinchingly] It is right to
try to become like that. So we go on our way, “undefessi
favente Deo.” [Should be indefessi favente Deo,
(by the grace of God unwearied)]
(It is fitting
that before one embarks upon that work, a treasure should be
gathered up that others can enjoy). Let us but go forth
quietly, testing everything and holding fast to what is good,
and trying all the time to learn more of what is useful and
adds to our experience. Weemoed [Melancholy] may be a
good experience, provided we write it as two words: wee
[woe], which is in every man, each of us having reason enough,
but it must be allied to moed [courage], and the more
the better, for it is good to be someone who never
despairs.
If only we try to live righteously, we shall fare well, even
though we are bound to encounter genuine sadness and real
disappointments and shall probably commit real mistakes and do
things that are wrong, but it is certainly better to be ardent
in spirit, even though one makes more mistakes, than to be
narrow-minded and over-cautious.
It is good to love as many things as one can, for therein
lies true strength, and those who loves much, do much and
accomplish much, and whatever is done with love is done well.
If one is affected by some book or other, let us say by
Michelet's L' hirondelle, L'alouette, Le rossignol, Les
aspirations d'aut-omne, Je vois d'ici une dame, J'aimais cette
petite ville singulière - to mention just a few, then it
is because that book is written from the heart in simplicity
and meekness of spirit. Better to say but a few words, but
filled with meaning, than to say many that are but idle sounds
and as easy to utter as they are useless
Love is the best and the noblest thing in the human heart,
especially when it is tested by life as gold is tested by fire.
Happy is he who has loved much, and is sure of himself, and
although he may have wavered and doubted, he has kept that
divine spark alive and returned to what was in the beginning
and ever shall be. If only one keeps loving faithfully what is
truly worth loving and does not squander one's love on trivial
and insignificant and meaningless things then one will
gradually obtain more light and grow stronger.
The sooner one tries to become accomplished in a certain
position in life and a certain field and adopts a relatively
independent way of thinking and acting, and the more one keeps
to set rules, the stronger in character one will grow, and that
does not mean becoming narrow-minded. It is a wise thing to do
this, because life is short, and time passes quickly. If one is
accomplished in one single thing, understanding one single
thing well, then one has insight into and knowledge of many
other things into the bargain.
It's as well to go out into the world from time to time and
mix with other people (and sometimes one feels, in fact,
obliged and called upon to do so) - or it may simply be
one way `de se jeter dans le travail sans arrière
pensée et de toutes ses forces' [Of throwing oneself
into work unreservedly and with all one's strength] - but one
who prefers to be quietly alone with his work and seems to need
very few friends will go safest in the world and among people.
One should never feel secure just because one has no
difficulties or cares or handicaps, and one should never be too
easy-going. Even in the politest circles and the best
surroundings and circumstances one should retain something of
the original character of a Robinson Crusoe or of primitive
man, for otherwise one cannot be rooted in oneself, and one
must never let the fire in one's soul die, for the time will
inevitably come when it will be needed. And he who chooses
poverty for himself and loves it possesses a great treasure and
will hear the voice of his conscience address him ever more
clearly. He who hears that voice, which is God's greatest gift,
in his innermost being and follows it, finds in it a friend at
last, and is never alone!
Happy is he who has faith in God, for he will in the end be
tided over all life's difficulties, albeit not without trouble
and sorrow. One cannot do better than hold on to the thought of
God come what may, in all circumstances, in every place and at
all times, and try to get to know Him better. One can learn
this from the Bible as well as from all other things. It is
good to go on believing that everything is more miraculous than
one can ever begin to understand, for that is the truth; it is
good to remain sensitive and humble and tender-hearted even
though one may have to hide one's feelings, as is often
necessary. It is good to be well versed in the things that are
hidden from the wise and the learned of this world, but that
are revealed as if by nature to the poor and simple, to women
and little children. For what can one learn which is better
than that which God has given by nature to every human soul and
which goes on living and loving, hoping and believing, in the
depths of every soul, unless we wantonly destroy it.
The need is for nothing less than the infinite and the
miraculous, and a man does well to be satisfied with nothing
less, and not to feel easy until he has gained it.
That is what all great men have acknowledged in their works,
all those who have thought a little more deeply and searched
and worked and loved a little more than the rest, who have
plumbed the depths of the sea of life. Plumb the depths, that
is what we too must do if we want to make a catch, and if we
sometimes have to work the whole night through without catching
anything, then we do well not to give up and to cast the net
once more at dawn.
So let us go forward quietly, each on his own path, forever
making for the light, `sursum corda' [lift up your hearts], and
in the knowledge that we are as others are and that others are
as we are and that it is right to love one another in the best
possible way, believing all things, hoping for all things and
enduring all things, and never failing. And not being too
troubled by our weaknesses, for even he who has none, has one
weakness, namely that he has none, and anyone who believes
himself to be consummately wise would do well to be foolish all
over again.
`Nous sommes aujourd'hui ce que nous étions
hier', that is, `honnêtes hommes', yet men who
must be tested in the fire of life to become fortified inwardly
are confirmed in what, by the grace of God, they are by
nature.
So may it be with us, my boy, and may you fare well along
your path, and may God be with you in all things and help you
to succeed, which, with a warm handshake on your departure
[Theo had been temporarily transferred to the Goupil house in
Paris], is the wish of
Your very loving brother,
Vincent
It is only a very small light, the one in the little
Sunday-school room in Barndesteeg, but let me keep it burning.
Even if I should not, however, I do not think that Adler is the
man to let it go out.
At this time, Vincent was 25 year oldSource: Vincent van Gogh. Letter to Theo van Gogh. Written 3 April 1878 in Amsterdam. Translated by Robert Harrison, edited by Robert Harrison, number 121. URL: https://www.webexhibits.org/vangogh/letter/6/121.htm.
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