Burn Without Asking Permission

When you do something, you should burn yourself up completely, like a good bonfire, leaving no trace of yourself.

Most of us tend the fire carefully, rationing the fuel, keeping something back. We work but hold our attention in reserve. We speak but save our best thoughts for later. Suzuki suggests something wilder: that real work asks us to give ourselves entirely, to let the doing consume us so thoroughly there is nothing left to admire or regret. The bonfire does not negotiate with the wood.