A Vocation Without the Competence

I'm not a huge fan of the word "charming," but I found this interview with Mavis Gallant just that.

Of particular interest to me: Early in her career, Gallant feared that she might have "inherited a flawed legacy," like her artistic father, afflicted with "a vocation without the competence to sustain it."

This reminded me of a line from a play I attended when I was twenty-one. I don't remember much about the play at all--not even the title--just this, the gist of a single line spoken by one of the main characters: He worried the only talent he had was a talent for appreciation.

That bit struck home then, and it continues to strike, on an almost daily basis.

It made me feel a little good to know that Ms. Gallant once suffered from a similar affliction at the beginning of her career.