It is better to desire than to enjoy, to love than to be loved.

Wanting something and loving someone are things you do; having and being loved are things that happen to you. The active side is where the life is, because it keeps you reaching, attentive and awake, whereas the receiving side, pleasant as it is, can be entirely passive. Anyone who has got what they wanted knows how quickly the having settles into ordinariness.

Rather than waiting to be appreciated, spend the week doing the appreciating. Take the trouble to notice, to want things properly, to love someone in a way that requires effort from you. It is a better position to occupy even when it is not returned.