Quote of the Day: George Matthew Adams on Daily Inspiration

Late August carries a quiet urgency: summer’s long light is thinning, routines are re-forming, and the mind starts asking what it wants to take into the next season. It’s a perfect moment to widen your life on purpose, to choose curiosity over autopilot. As George Matthew Adams reminds us, “People with many interests live, not only longest, but happiest.”

At first glance, this sounds like permission to dabble. It’s more than that, it’s a strategy for staying awake to your own life. Multiple interests keep your attention in motion: when one area feels stalled, another offers traction. That movement isn’t distraction; it’s renewal. A mind that regularly meets fresh problems and new beauty tends to stay more flexible, more hopeful, and less brittle under stress.

Practical application is simple: build a “portfolio of pursuits.” Keep one interest that strengthens the body, one that feeds the mind, and one that restores the spirit. Rotate them like seasons, not commitments carved in stone. Over time, these pursuits become built-in buffers against boredom, disappointment, and the slow drift into stagnation. Better yet, interests create natural communities, book clubs, pickup games, garden swaps, where humanity grows through shared enthusiasm.

George Matthew Adams earned his credibility by turning human nature into usable wisdom, writing prolifically with a philosopher’s clarity and a mentor’s empathy, always emphasizing personal growth as a daily practice.

Today, pick one small “second interest” you’ve been postponing: borrow a library book, take a 20-minute sketch walk, learn five chords, or watch a beginner lesson and practice for ten minutes, then schedule the next session before you forget. Let your curiosity earn its keep, and may your days grow wider, steadier, and more resilience.