i like this

I’ve been reading the memoir of a tribesman from Burma who went on to graduate from Cambridge. He recounts his life and his involvement in the student protests of the 1980’s. Ultimately his status as a student would lead him to flee for his life.

As he was struggling through the jungle, attempting to seek some kind of refuge with the rebel fighters of the Karenni tribe, and hunted by the Burmese army, he learned an important truth about motivation,

“We were so stuff from the long marches of each day that every step was an effort. I was soaked to the skin either by rain or sweat. I discovered it was impossible to be motivated to force one’s body to climb mountains, day after day, from fear of death. If I let my mind dwell on the dangers, I found I lost all physical energy. It was only if I thought about freedom and love of life that the physical burden was supportable. I was determined not to talk about danger and to avoid those who did so. “

                        Pascal Khoo Thwe, From the Land of the Green Ghosts

I  like this.