TED2009
Elizabeth Gilbert: Your elusive creative genius
Elizabeth Gilbert sormenari ateak irekitzeaz
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Elizabeth Gilbertek artisten eta geinuen ezinezko gauzei buruz hausnatzen du eta pertsona bat geinu izan beharrean guztiok geinu bat dugula azaltzen duen ideia defendatzen du. Solasaldi dibertigarri, petsonal eta hunkigarria.
Elizabeth Gilbert - Writer
The author of 'Eat, Pray, Love,' Elizabeth Gilbert has thought long and hard about some big topics. Her fascinations: genius, creativity and how we get in our own way when it comes to both. Full bio
The author of 'Eat, Pray, Love,' Elizabeth Gilbert has thought long and hard about some big topics. Her fascinations: genius, creativity and how we get in our own way when it comes to both. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:13
I am a writer.
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Idazle bat naiz
00:15
Writing books is my profession but it's more than that, of course.
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Liburuak idaztea nire lanbidea da baina hori baino gehiago ere bai, noski
00:19
It is also my great lifelong love and fascination.
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Nire bizitzako maitasun handia eta gauza liluragarria ere bada
00:23
And I don't expect that that's ever going to change.
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Eta ez dut hori inoiz aldatuko denik espero
00:25
But, that said, something kind of peculiar has happened recently
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Baina, hori esanda, duela gutxi berezia izan den zerbait gertatu da
00:30
in my life and in my career,
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nire bizitzan eta nire karreran
00:33
which has caused me to have to recalibrate my whole relationship with this work.
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nire lanbidearekin nuen harremana aldarazi duen zerbait
00:38
And the peculiar thing is that I recently wrote this book,
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Gauza berezi hori da duela gutxi liburu bat idatzi nuela,
00:41
this memoir called "Eat, Pray, Love"
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“Eat, Pray, Love” (“Jan, Errezatu, Maitatu”) delako memoria
00:43
which, decidedly unlike any of my previous books,
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hau idatzi ditudan beste liburuekin alderatuz
00:48
went out in the world for some reason, and became this big,
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arrazoiren bategatik munduratu zen eta nazioarteko arrakasta izugarri
00:51
mega-sensation, international bestseller thing.
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eta mega-liluragarria lortu duen liburua da
00:54
The result of which is that everywhere I go now,
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Honen emaitza da, edonora joanda
00:57
people treat me like I'm doomed.
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jendeak etsita egongo banintz bezala tratatzen nauela
01:00
Seriously -- doomed, doomed!
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Serioski – etsita, etsita!
01:03
Like, they come up to me now, all worried, and they say,
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Adibidez, nigana gerturatzen dira, oso arduratuta eta ondorengoa esaten didate
01:05
"Aren't you afraid you're never going to be able to top that?
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“Ez duzu beldurrik, ez diozu beldurrik inoiz arrakasta gainditu ezinari?
01:10
Aren't you afraid you're going to keep writing for your whole life
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Ez diozu beldurrik bizitza guztia idazten pasatzeari
01:13
and you're never again going to create a book
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eta inoiz liburu bat sortzeari
01:15
that anybody in the world cares about at all,
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inoiz norbaiti interesatuko zaion liburu bat ez sortzeari,
01:18
ever again?"
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inoiz ez?
01:20
So that's reassuring, you know.
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Beraz, hori lasaigarria da, badakizue
01:22
But it would be worse, except for that I happen to remember
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Baina okerrago izan liteke, baina oroitzen dut
01:25
that over 20 years ago, when I first started telling people -- when I was a teenager --
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nire gaztaroan, duela 20 urte baino gehiago
01:29
that I wanted to be a writer,
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idazlea izan nahi nuela esaten hasi nintzenean
01:31
I was met with this same kind of, sort of fear-based reaction.
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jendeak beldurrean oinarritutako antzeko erreakzioa izan zuela.
01:34
And people would say, "Aren't you afraid you're never going to have any success?
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Jendeak ondorengoa galdetzen zidan “Ez duzu inoiz arrakasta lortuko ez duzun beldurrik?
01:37
Aren't you afraid the humiliation of rejection will kill you?
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Ez diozu beldurrik ukazioaren umilazioak eraginda hiltzeari?
01:40
Aren't you afraid that you're going to work your whole life at this craft
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Ez diozu beldurrik bizitza guztia arte honetan lanean pasa
01:43
and nothing's ever going to come of it
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eta hortik ezer ez ateratzeari
01:45
and you're going to die on a scrap heap of broken dreams
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eta amets multzo baten gainean
01:47
with your mouth filled with bitter ash of failure?"
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ahoa errauts zaporez beteta hiltzeari?
01:51
(Laughter)
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(Algarak)
01:53
Like that, you know.
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Horrelako zerbait, badakizue
01:55
The answer -- the short answer to all those questions is, "Yes."
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Erantzuna, galdera guzti horien erantzuna motza da, “Bai”.
02:00
Yes, I'm afraid of all those things.
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Bai, gauza guzti horien beldur naiz.
02:02
And I always have been.
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Eta beti izan naiz
02:03
And I'm afraid of many, many more things besides
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Eta gauza askoren beldur naiz
02:06
that people can't even guess at,
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jendeak asma ez ditzakeen gauza askori diet beldur
02:08
like seaweed and other things that are scary.
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Algei esaterako eta beldurra ematen duten beste hainbat gauzari
02:12
But, when it comes to writing,
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Baina, idazteaz dihardugunean
02:14
the thing that I've been sort of thinking about lately, and wondering about lately, is why?
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azken aldian pentsatzen aritu naizena, eta nire buruari galdetu diodana, zera da, zergatik?
02:18
You know, is it rational?
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Badakizue, arrazionala da?
02:20
Is it logical that anybody should be expected
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Logikoa da norbaitek sentizea
02:23
to be afraid of the work that they feel they were put on this Earth to do.
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lan horregatik muduratu dela eta lan horren beldur izatea?
02:27
And what is it specifically about creative ventures
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Badakizue, eta sormena oinarri duten lanetan gabiltzanon ezaugarria da
02:32
that seems to make us really nervous about each other's mental health
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dirudienez horrek besteen osasun mentalaren inguruan urduritzen gaitu
02:35
in a way that other careers kind of don't do, you know?
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beste lanbide batzuk egiten ez duten moduan, badakizue?
02:38
Like my dad, for example, was a chemical engineer
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Nire aita bezala esaterako, ingeniari kimikoa zen
02:42
and I don't recall once in his 40 years of chemical engineering
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eta ez dut oroitzen behin ere bere ingeniari kimikoko 40 urteko bizitzan
02:45
anybody asking him if he was afraid to be a chemical engineer, you know?
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inork ingeniari kimiko izateari beldur zion galdetu zionik, badakizue?
02:49
It didn't -- that chemical-engineering block, John, how's it going?
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Hori ez zen gertatzen -- ingeniari kimiko hori, John, zer moduz dabil?
02:55
It just didn't come up like that, you know?
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Besterik gabe ez zen gertatzen, badakizue?
02:57
But to be fair, chemical engineers as a group
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Baina justuak izateko, ingeniari kimikoen taldeak
03:01
haven't really earned a reputation over the centuries
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ez du irabazi mendeetan zehar
03:03
for being alcoholic manic-depressives.
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alkoholiko maniatiko-depresibo erreputazioa
03:06
(Laughter)
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(Algarak)
03:08
We writers, we kind of do have that reputation,
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Guk idazleok,erreputazio hori dugu,
03:11
and not just writers, but creative people across all genres,
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eta ez soilik idazleok, baita mota ezberdinetako sormen munduko jendeak ere
03:14
it seems, have this reputation for being enormously mentally unstable.
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mentalki egonkortu gabeak izateko erreputazioa dugu.
03:19
And all you have to do is look at the very grim death count
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Eta egin behar duzun guztia zera da, hildakoen zerrenda etsigarria irakurri
03:23
in the 20th century alone, of really magnificent creative minds
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20. mendean soilik, sormen bikaina zutenen hildakoen zerrenda
03:27
who died young and often at their own hands, you know?
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gazte eta askotan beren buruaz beste eginda heriotza aurkitu zutenena.
03:30
And even the ones who didn't literally commit suicide
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Eta suizidatu ez zirenak ere,
03:33
seem to be really undone by their gifts, you know.
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euren dohaiak ezin kudeatu zenbiltzan.
03:36
Norman Mailer, just before he died, last interview, he said
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Norman Mailerrek, hil aurretik egin zuen azken elkarrizketan ondorengoa esan zuen
03:39
"Every one of my books has killed me a little more."
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“Nire liburu bakoitzak pittin bat gehiago hil nau”
03:43
An extraordinary statement to make about your life's work.
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Bere lan bizitzaren inguruko azalpen izugarriak, badakizue?
03:47
But we don't even blink when we hear somebody say this
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Baina norbait horrelako zerbait esaten entzuten dugunean ez ditugu begiak kliskatu ere egiten
03:50
because we've heard that kind of stuff for so long
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horrelako gauza asko azken aldian entzun ditugulako
03:53
and somehow we've completely internalized and accepted collectively
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eta modu batera barneratu eta taldean ideia hori onartu dugulako da
03:57
this notion that creativity and suffering are somehow inherently linked
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sormena eta sufrimendua batera doazela
04:01
and that artistry, in the end, will always ultimately lead to anguish.
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eta arteak, azkenean, beti eramango gaitu etsipenera.
04:06
And the question that I want to ask everybody here today
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Eta gaur zuei guztioi egin nahi dizuedan galdera ondorengoa da
04:08
is are you guys all cool with that idea?
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zuek gustura zaudete ideia horrekin?
04:11
Are you comfortable with that?
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Gustura sentitzen zarete ideia horrekin?
04:14
Because you look at it even from an inch away and, you know ...
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distantzia txikira ikusten duzuelako, badakizue
04:17
I'm not at all comfortable with that assumption.
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Ni ez naiz gustura sentitzen susmo horrekin.
04:20
I think it's odious.
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Gorrotagarria dela uste dut
04:21
And I also think it's dangerous,
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Eta arriskutsua dela ere uste dut
04:23
and I don't want to see it perpetuated into the next century.
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eta ez dut datorren mendean jarraitzen duela ikusi nahi
04:26
I think it's better if we encourage our great creative minds to live.
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Gure adimen sormentsuak bizitzea nahi dut.
04:30
And I definitely know that, in my case -- in my situation --
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Eta baietz uste dut
04:36
it would be very dangerous for me to start sort of leaking down that dark path
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nire kasuan oso arriskutsua izango litzateke susmoen bide ilunean sartzea,
04:41
of assumption, particularly given the circumstance
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batez ere
04:44
that I'm in right now in my career.
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gaur egun nire ibilbidean nagoen unea ikusita
04:46
Which is -- you know, like check it out,
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Zuek badakizue
04:49
I'm pretty young, I'm only about 40 years old.
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beno, nahiko gaztea naiz, 40 urte inguru ditut soilik.
04:51
I still have maybe another four decades of work left in me.
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Agian oraindik beste lau hamarkada pasako ditut lanean
04:54
And it's exceedingly likely that anything I write from this point forward
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Oso posiblea da hemendik aurrera
04:59
is going to be judged by the world as the work that came after
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idazten dudan oro munduan arrakasta izan zuen
05:02
the freakish success of my last book, right?
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liburu horren ondorengo moduan zabaltzea, ezta?
05:05
I should just put it bluntly, because we're all sort of friends here now --
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zuzenean esan beharko nuke, guztiok hemen lagunak garelako
05:09
it's exceedingly likely that my greatest success is behind me.
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oso posiblea da nire arrakasta handiena pasa izana
05:13
So Jesus, what a thought!
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Ene Jesus, a ze ideia!
05:16
That's the kind of thought that could lead a person
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Badakizue pentsamendu hori dela
05:18
to start drinking gin at nine o'clock in the morning,
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pertsona bat goizeko bederatzietan ginebra edatera bultzatzen duena
05:21
and I don't want to go there.
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eta nik ez dut hori egin nahi.
05:24
(Laughter)
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(Barreak)
05:25
I would prefer to keep doing this work that I love.
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Nahiagoko nuke maite dudan lan hori egiten jarraitu.
05:27
And so, the question becomes, how?
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Beraz, galdera itzultzen da, nola?
05:31
And so, it seems to me, upon a lot of reflection,
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Niri iruditzen zait, asko pentsatu ondoren,
05:33
that the way that I have to work now, in order to continue writing,
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orain lanean jarraitu behar dudan modua, idazten jarraitzeko,
05:37
is that I have to create some sort of protective psychological construct, right?
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babes psikologikoa duen zerbait sortu behar dudala, ezta?
05:41
I have to sort of find some way to have a safe distance
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Nire barnean distantzia bat egoteko modua aurkitu behar dut
05:44
between me, as I am writing, and my very natural anxiety
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nire idazle izaeraren
05:49
about what the reaction to that writing is going to be, from now on.
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eta hemendik aurrera idazten dudan guztiaren erreakzioaren aurrean izango dudan ansiedade naturalaren artean.
05:53
And, as I've been looking over the last year for models for how to do that
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Eta, bitartean aurreko urtean egin nahi nuen horren
05:57
I've been sort of looking across time,
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adibideak bilatzen aritu naiz,
05:59
and I've been trying to find other societies
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eta beste gizarte batzuk begiratzen aritu naiz
06:01
to see if they might have had better and saner ideas than we have
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sortzaileei laguntzeko moduei buruz ideia hobe
06:05
about how to help creative people, sort of manage
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eta egokiagoak zituzten begiratuz,
06:08
the inherent emotional risks of creativity.
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sormenaren emozio arriskutsuak administratzeko.
06:11
And that search has led me to ancient Greece and ancient Rome.
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Eta bilaketa horrek Grezia eta Erroma zaharrera eraman nau.
06:16
So stay with me, because it does circle around and back.
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Beraz mantendu zaitezte nirekin, honek bira osoa emango duelako.
06:19
But, ancient Greece and ancient Rome --
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Baina, Grezia eta Erroma zaharrean
06:21
people did not happen to believe that creativity
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jendeak ez zuen uste sormena
06:24
came from human beings back then, O.K.?
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gizakitik zetorrenik, bai?
06:26
People believed that creativity was this divine attendant spirit
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Jendeak uste zuen sormena gizakiarengana joaten zen
06:30
that came to human beings from some distant and unknowable source,
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espiritu izugarri bat zela, distantea eta ezezaguna,
06:34
for distant and unknowable reasons.
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arrazoi distante eta ezezagunen ondorioz.
06:37
The Greeks famously called these divine attendant spirits of creativity "daemons."
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Grekoek sormen espiritu zoragarri horiei “daimones” deitu zioten
06:42
Socrates, famously, believed that he had a daemon
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Garaiko jendeak uste zuen Sokratesek
06:45
who spoke wisdom to him from afar.
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daimon bat zuela eta jakintasun handiz urrutitik hitz egiten ziola.
06:48
The Romans had the same idea,
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Erromatarrek ideia bera zuten,
06:49
but they called that sort of disembodied creative spirit a genius.
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baina hauek espirituari “incorporeo jeinua” deitzen zioten.
06:54
Which is great, because the Romans did not actually think
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Hori izugarria zen, Erromatarrek ez zutelako uste
06:57
that a genius was a particularly clever individual.
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jeinu bat zerbait majikoa eta jainkotarra zela.
06:59
They believed that a genius was this, sort of magical divine entity,
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Bera bazela uste zuen,
07:03
who was believed to literally live in the walls
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bizi zela, literalki, artisten estudioan,
07:07
of an artist's studio, kind of like Dobby the house elf,
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Dobby elfo domestikoa izango balitz bezala,
07:11
and who would come out and sort of invisibly assist the artist with their work
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eta atera eta inbisible izanik artistarengana joaten zela bere lanarekin
07:15
and would shape the outcome of that work.
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eta lanari forma ematen ziola.
07:18
So brilliant -- there it is, right there, that distance that I'm talking about --
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Hain bikaina – hortxe dago hortxe hain justu hitz egiten ari naizen tartea—
07:21
that psychological construct to protect you from the results of your work.
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lanaren emaitzatik babesteko egoera psikologikoa.
07:26
And everyone knew that this is how it functioned, right?
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Guztiek zekiten horrela funtzionatzen zuela, ezta?
07:29
So the ancient artist was protected from certain things,
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Horrela antzinako artista hainbat gauzetatik babestuta zegoen,
07:32
like, for example, too much narcissism, right?
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esaterako, nartzisismo gehiegi ezta?
07:34
If your work was brilliant you couldn't take all the credit for it,
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Zure lana liluragarria bazen ezin zenuen meritu guztia zure gain hartu. Bere ordez,
07:37
everybody knew that you had this disembodied genius who had helped you.
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guztiek zekiten jeinu horrek lagundu zintuela.
07:41
If your work bombed, not entirely your fault, you know?
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Zure lanak porrot egiten bazuen, ez zen guztiz zure errua, badakizue?
07:45
Everyone knew your genius was kind of lame.
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Guztiek zekiten zure jeinua nahiko ahula zela.
07:48
And this is how people thought about creativity in the West for a really long time.
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Eta hori da denbora luzez mendebaldeko jendeak pentsatu zuena.
07:53
And then the Renaissance came and everything changed,
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Eta orduan iritxi zen Errenazimendua eta dena aldatu zen,
07:55
and we had this big idea, and the big idea was
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eta izugarrizko ideia handia izan genuen
07:57
let's put the individual human being at the center of the universe
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ideia izugarri hori gizakia munduaren erdian jartzea izan zen
08:01
above all gods and mysteries, and there's no more room
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jainko eta misterio guztien gainean eta ez dago leku gehiago
08:03
for mystical creatures who take dictation from the divine.
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jainkotarretik diktaketa hartzen duten izaki mistikoentzat
08:06
And it's the beginning of rational humanism,
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Gizaki arrazionalaren hastapena,
08:09
and people started to believe that creativity
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eta jendea sinesten hasi zen
08:11
came completely from the self of the individual.
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sormena gizakitik zetorrela.
08:13
And for the first time in history,
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Eta historian lehen aldiz,
08:16
you start to hear people referring to this or that artist as being a genius
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artista jeinu bat bezala kontsideratu zen,
08:21
rather than having a genius.
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norbaitek jeinu bat zuela esan beharrean.
08:22
And I got to tell you, I think that was a huge error.
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Eta esan behar dizuet, hori nire aburuz hutsegite handia izan zela.
08:26
You know, I think that allowing somebody, one mere person
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Badakizue, nire ustez norbaiti, pertsona sinple bati,
08:30
to believe that he or she is like, the vessel,
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bera ontzia eta iturria dela
08:33
you know, like the font and the essence and the source
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eta jatorria eta esentzia,
08:35
of all divine, creative, unknowable, eternal mystery
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jainkotiar misterio oro, sormenezkoa, ezezaguna dela esatean
08:39
is just a smidge too much responsibility to put on one fragile, human psyche.
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gizakiaren adimenerako responsabilidade handiegia dela uste dut.
08:45
It's like asking somebody to swallow the sun.
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Norbaiti eguzkia irenstea eskatzea bezala da.
08:48
It just completely warps and distorts egos,
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Deformatu eta distortsionatu egiten ditu egoak
08:51
and it creates all these unmanageable expectations about performance.
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eta errendeminduaren inguruko itxaropen jasan ezinak sortzen ditu.
08:55
And I think the pressure of that
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Nire ustez presio hori
08:57
has been killing off our artists for the last 500 years.
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gure artistak hiltzen aritu da azken 500 urteetan .
09:00
And, if this is true,
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Eta, hori egia bada,
09:02
and I think it is true,
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eta uste dut egia dela
09:04
the question becomes, what now?
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galdera itzultzen da, orain zer?
09:07
Can we do this differently?
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Hau modu desberdinean egin dezakegu?
09:09
Maybe go back to some more ancient understanding
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Agian jendearen arteko erlazioa eta sormenaren misioak
09:12
about the relationship between humans and the creative mystery.
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lehen ulertzen zituzten moduan ulertzera itzuli beharko ginateke.
09:17
Maybe not.
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Agian ez.
09:18
Maybe we can't just erase 500 years of rational humanistic thought
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Agian ezin ditugu besterik gabe gizakiak 500 urtetan izan dituen
09:22
in one 18 minute speech.
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pentsamendu arrazionalaren diskurtsoak 18 minututan ezabatu
09:24
And there's probably people in this audience
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Eta seguruenik audientzia honetan bada
09:27
who would raise really legitimate scientific suspicions
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maitagarriak existitzen diren
09:31
about the notion of, basically fairies
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susmo zientifikoak dituenik,
09:33
who follow people around rubbing fairy juice on their projects and stuff.
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maitagarrien zumoa jendeari proiektuetan igurtzen dizkietela eta horrelakoak.
09:38
I'm not, probably, going to bring you all along with me on this.
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Ez dut guztiak nirekin ados egotea lortuko.
09:43
But the question that I kind of want to pose is --
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Baina azaldu nahi dudan galdera,
09:45
you know, why not?
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zergatik ez? da
09:48
Why not think about it this way?
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zergarik ez dugu gure modura pentsatuko?
09:49
Because it makes as much sense as anything else I have ever heard
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Entzun dudan beste edozeren beste zentzu bait du
09:54
in terms of explaining the utter maddening capriciousness
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zoramenezko, ausazko faktore hauek azaltzeko,
09:58
of the creative process.
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sormen prozesuaren faktoreak alegia.
09:59
A process which, as anybody who has ever tried to make something --
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Sormen prozesu hau, zeozer sortzen saiatu diren guztiek dakiten bezala,
10:02
which is to say basically everyone here ---
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---hau da, hemen gauden guztiok—
10:04
knows does not always behave rationally.
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ez da beti arrazionalki portatzen.
10:07
And, in fact, can sometimes feel downright paranormal.
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Eta gainera, batzuetan guztiz paranormala izan daiteke.
10:12
I had this encounter recently where I met the extraordinary American poet Ruth Stone,
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Duela gutxi Rutg Stonen poetisa amerikarr izugarriarekin aurktiu nintzen,
10:18
who's now in her 90s, but she's been a poet her entire life
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jada 90 urte ditu, baina poetisa bat izan da bizitza osoan zehar
10:20
and she told me that when she was growing up in rural Virginia,
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eta esan zidan, gaztetan Viriginian bizi zenean
10:24
she would be out working in the fields,
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1601
bera landan lanean ari zenean,
10:25
and she said she would feel and hear a poem
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3157
poemak sentitu eta entzun egiten zituela esan zuen
10:28
coming at her from over the landscape.
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2007
beregana zuzen zioazen poemak landen gainetik
10:30
And she said it was like a thunderous train of air.
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Eta esan zidan airezko tren baten modukoa zela.
10:34
And it would come barreling down at her over the landscape.
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Eta beragana paisaiatik kontrolik gabe etorriko zela.
10:36
And she felt it coming, because it would shake the earth under her feet.
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Eta etortzen sentitzen zuela, lurrak bere hanken azpian mugitzea eragiten baitzuen.
10:39
She knew that she had only one thing to do at that point,
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3099
Berak bazekien une horretan gauza bat soilik egin behar zuela,
10:43
and that was to, in her words, "run like hell."
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eta zera zen, bere hitzetan “deabru baten moduan korrika egitea”
10:45
And she would run like hell to the house
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Eta korrika egiten zuen etxera bidean
10:46
and she would be getting chased by this poem,
201
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eta poemak bere atzetik jarraituko zion.
10:48
and the whole deal was that she had to get to a piece of paper and a pencil
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eta paper eta arkatz batez baliatuz paperean harrapatu behar zuen
10:51
fast enough so that when it thundered through her, she could collect it
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eta azkar egin behar izaten zuen, barnean azaltzen zitzaion hori hartu
10:54
and grab it on the page.
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eta orrialdean arrapatzeko
10:56
And other times she wouldn't be fast enough,
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1955
Eta batzuetan ez zen behar bezain azkarra,
10:58
so she'd be running and running and running, and she wouldn't get to the house
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bera korrika eta korrika arituko zen eta ez zen etxera iritxiko
11:01
and the poem would barrel through her and she would miss it
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eta poemak arrapatu egingo zuen eta galdu egingo zen betiko
11:04
and she said it would continue on across the landscape,
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paisain zehar aldenduz
11:06
looking, as she put it "for another poet."
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berak esan bezala “beste poeta” baten bila.
11:09
And then there were these times --
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Eta berak zioen –
11:12
this is the piece I never forgot --
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ez dut zati hori inoiz ahaztuko-
11:14
she said that there were moments where she would almost miss it, right?
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batzuetan, poema galtzear zegoenean
11:17
So, she's running to the house and she's looking for the paper
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etxera korrika ziztu bizian eta paper baten bila
11:20
and the poem passes through her,
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eta justu poema bere paretik pasatzen zenean
11:22
and she grabs a pencil just as it's going through her,
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berak arkatza hartzen zuela esku batekin
11:25
and then she said, it was like she would reach out with her other hand
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eta beste eskua luzatu egiten zuen
11:27
and she would catch it.
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eta orduan poema harrapatu, juxtu juxtu.
11:29
She would catch the poem by its tail,
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Poema buztanetik harrapatzen zuen,
11:31
and she would pull it backwards into her body
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eta atzeraka tiratzen zuen bere gorputzaren barnerantz
11:34
as she was transcribing on the page.
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paperean idazten zuen bitartean.
11:36
And in these instances, the poem would come up on the page perfect and intact
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4855
Eta batzuetan, poema bikain eta garbi azaltzen zen paperean
11:41
but backwards, from the last word to the first.
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baina alderantziz agertzen zen, azken hitza lehenengoa.
11:44
(Laughter)
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(Barreak)
11:46
So when I heard that I was like -- that's uncanny,
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Beraz, entzun nuenean pentsatu nuen – ze arraroa,
11:50
that's exactly what my creative process is like.
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horrela da hain justu nire sormen prozesua.
11:53
(Laughter)
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(Barreak)
11:57
That's not at all what my creative process is -- I'm not the pipeline!
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Hori ez da nire sormen prozesu osoa- Ez naiz tuberia!
12:00
I'm a mule, and the way that I have to work
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1854
Inozoa naiz, nik lan egiteko modua zera da,
12:01
is that I have to get up at the same time every day,
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egunero ordu berean esnatu,
12:03
and sweat and labor and barrel through it really awkwardly.
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eta izerditu eta lan egin eta guzti honetatik modu traketsean pasa.
12:06
But even I, in my mulishness,
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3000
Baina oraindik ni, nire txorakerian,
12:09
even I have brushed up against that thing, at times.
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ni gauza horrekin marruskatu naiz batzuetan.
12:13
And I would imagine that a lot of you have too.
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Eta zuetako asko ere, imajinatzen dut.
12:15
You know, even I have had work or ideas come through me from a source
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Badakizue, baditut lan edo ideiak nigana iturri
12:18
that I honestly cannot identify.
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intzo identifikagarria ez den batetik iristen direnak.
12:21
And what is that thing?
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Eta zer da gauza hori?
12:22
And how are we to relate to it in a way that will not make us lose our minds,
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Eta nola erlaziona gaitezke berekin burua galtzea eragin gabe,
12:26
but, in fact, might actually keep us sane?
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baina, gainera, zuzen edo zentzudun matendu gaitezan?
12:29
And for me, the best contemporary example that I have of how to do that
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Niretzako, adibide garaikide onena
12:33
is the musician Tom Waits,
240
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2332
Tom Waits musikariarena da,
12:35
who I got to interview several years ago on a magazine assignment.
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duela urte batzuk aldizkari baterako elkarrizketatu nuena.
12:40
And we were talking about this,
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1249
Eta honi buruz ari ginen hizketan
12:41
and you know, Tom, for most of his life he was pretty much the embodiment
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3713
eta badakizue, Tom, bere bizitzaren zati handienean
12:45
of the tormented contemporary modern artist,
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artista garaikide moderno oinazetsuaren adibide izan da,
12:47
trying to control and manage and dominate
245
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2623
guztiz barneratuak ditugun
12:50
these sort of uncontrollable creative impulses
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2474
sormen inpultso kontrolaezin horiek kontrolatu,
12:52
that were totally internalized.
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erabili eta menderatzen saiatzen.
12:54
But then he got older, he got calmer,
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2005
Baina, ordurako zahartu egin zen, lasaitu,
12:56
and one day he was driving down the freeway in Los Angeles he told me,
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2923
eta egun batean autopistan gidatzen ari zen, Los Angelesen esan zidanez,
12:59
and this is when it all changed for him.
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1840
eta bapatean guztia aldatu zen beretzako
13:01
And he's speeding along, and all of a sudden
251
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1991
Gidatzen ari da eta bat-batean
13:03
he hears this little fragment of melody,
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3741
burura etortzen zaion melodia honen soinua entzuten du,
13:06
that comes into his head as inspiration often comes, elusive and tantalizing,
253
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4029
bere burura inspirazio moduan etortzen da askotan, ihesbide eta iradokitzaile,
13:10
and he wants it, you know, it's gorgeous,
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eta nahi du, zuek badakizue, polita da
13:13
and he longs for it, but he has no way to get it.
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eta faltan botatzen du, baina ez du lortzeko aukerarik.
13:15
He doesn't have a piece of paper, he doesn't have a pencil,
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Ez du paper zatirik, ez du arkatzik,
13:17
he doesn't have a tape recorder.
257
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ez du grabadora bat.
13:18
So he starts to feel all of that old anxiety start to rise in him
258
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2968
Beraz, ansiedadea handitzen joaten da,
13:21
like, "I'm going to lose this thing,
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1991
“Gauza hau galduko dut,
13:23
and then I'm going to be haunted by this song forever.
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1920
eta orduan kanta honek betiko atsekabetuko nau.
13:25
I'm not good enough, and I can't do it."
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1771
Ez naiz behar bezain ona, ezin dut egin"
13:27
And instead of panicking, he just stopped.
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Beldurrak jaten utzi beharrean geratu egin zen.
13:29
He just stopped that whole mental process
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1748
Prozesu mentala geratu zuen
13:31
and he did something completely novel.
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2155
eta guztiz berria zen zerbait egin zuen.
13:33
He just looked up at the sky, and he said,
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2722
Zerura begiratu zuen soilik, eta ondorengoa esan zuen
13:36
"Excuse me, can you not see that I'm driving?"
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“Barkatu, ez duzu gidatzen ari naizela ikusten?”
13:39
(Laughter)
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(Barreak)
13:42
"Do I look like I can write down a song right now?
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2734
“Kantu bat orain idatzi dezakedala uste duzu?
13:45
If you really want to exist, come back at a more opportune moment
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Benetan existitu nahi baduzu, itzuli momentu egokiago batean,
13:49
when I can take care of you.
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zutaz arduratzeko aukera dudanean.
13:51
Otherwise, go bother somebody else today.
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Bestela, joan zaitez beste norbait eragoztera.
13:54
Go bother Leonard Cohen."
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Joan zaitez Leonard Cohen eragoztera”
13:57
And his whole work process changed after that.
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Eta bere lanerako modua guztiz aldatu zen honen ondoren.
14:00
Not the work, the work was still oftentimes as dark as ever.
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Ez lana, askotan ordura arte bezain iluna zen.
14:04
But the process, and the heavy anxiety around it
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Baizik eta prozesua, eta hain astuna zen ansiedadea
14:07
was released when he took the genie, the genius out of him
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askatua izan zen jeinua hartu zuenean eta bere barnetik atera zuenean,
14:10
where it was causing nothing but trouble, and released it kind of back where it came from,
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bertan arazoak soilik sortzen zituen, eta askatu egin zuen etorri zen lekura itzuliz,
14:13
and realized that this didn't have to be this internalized, tormented thing.
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eta orduan konturatu zen ez zuela barneratutako zerbait izan behar, oinazetsua.
14:17
It could be this peculiar, wondrous, bizarre collaboration
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3744
Kolaboratzaile berezi bat izan zitekeen, bikaina, apartekoa,
14:20
kind of conversation between Tom and the strange, external thing
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4132
Tom eta kanpoan zegoen gauza horren arteko harremana,
14:25
that was not quite Tom.
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Tom ez zena.
14:27
So when I heard that story it started to shift a little bit
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2706
Beraz, istorio hori entzun nuenean hasi zen pittin bat aldatzen
14:30
the way that I worked too, and it already saved me once.
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2629
nire lan egiteko modua, eta behin salbatu ninduen.
14:32
This idea, it saved me when I was in the middle of writing "Eat, Pray, Love,"
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3331
Ideia honek salbatu ninduen “Eat, Pray, Love” idatzen ari nintzenean
14:36
and I fell into one of those, sort of pits of despair
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2588
eta zerbaitetan lanean ari zarenean eta funtzionatzen ez duenean
14:38
that we all fall into when we're working on something and it's not coming
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3341
eta pentsatzen hasten zarenean desastre bat izango dela
14:42
and you start to think this is going to be a disaster,
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2242
eta inoiz idatzi den liburu okerrena izango dela
14:44
this is going to be the worst book ever written.
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1761
Une horietako batean, desesperazio zulo batean erori nintzen.
14:46
Not just bad, but the worst book ever written.
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2147
Ez txarra soilik, inoiz idatzi zen okerrena.
14:48
And I started to think I should just dump this project.
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3962
Proiektua utzi behar nuela pentsatzen hasi nintzen.
14:52
But then I remembered Tom talking to the open air
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3075
Baina Tom aireari hitz egitenez oroitu nuen orduan e
14:55
and I tried it.
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2048
ta saiatu egin nintzan.
14:57
So I just lifted my face up from the manuscript
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2492
Beraz, burua eskuizkributiktik altsatu nuen
14:59
and I directed my comments to an empty corner of the room.
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2930
eta nire hitzak gelako leku hutsera bidali nituen.
15:02
And I said aloud, "Listen you, thing,
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3578
Eta ahots gora ondorengoa esan nuen: “Ei zu, gauza,
15:06
you and I both know that if this book isn't brilliant
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3198
entzun, biok dakigu liburu hau bikaina ez bada
15:09
that is not entirely my fault, right?
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1801
ez dela soilik nire errua, ezta?
15:11
Because you can see that I am putting everything I have into this,
298
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3327
Nire gogo guztiak jartzen ari naizela ikusten baituzu,
15:14
I don't have any more than this.
299
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1368
ez dut ezer gehiago.
15:15
So if you want it to be better, then you've got to show up and do your part of the deal.
300
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3226
Beraz, hobea izatea nahi baduzu, azaldu eta tratuaren zure zatia bete behar duzu.
15:19
O.K. But if you don't do that, you know what, the hell with it.
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2994
Bale. Baina egiten ez baduzu, badakizu, pikutara honekin-
15:22
I'm going to keep writing anyway because that's my job.
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2936
Idazten jarraituko dut nire lana delako.
15:25
And I would please like the record to reflect today
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1899
Eta gaur hemen egon naizela
15:26
that I showed up for my part of the job."
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2300
nire tratuaren zatia betetzeko islatzea nahi dut.”
15:29
(Laughter)
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(Algarak)
15:32
Because --
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Zeren
15:35
(Applause)
307
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2074
(Txaloak)
15:37
in the end it's like this, O.K. --
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2172
azken finean horrelako zerbait da, bai.
15:39
centuries ago in the deserts of North Africa,
309
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2401
duela mende batzuk Afrikar Iparraldeko desertuetan
15:41
people used to gather for these moonlight dances of sacred dance and music
310
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4667
jendea bildu egiten zen musikarekin ilargiaren argitan dantzatzeko
15:46
that would go on for hours and hours, until dawn.
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2704
eta orduak eta orduak pasatzen zituzten horrela, egunsentiraino.
15:49
And they were always magnificent, because the dancers were professionals
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3027
Eta beti ziren izugarriak, dantzariak profesionalak
15:52
and they were terrific, right?
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1174
eta izugarriak zirelako ezta?
15:53
But every once in a while, very rarely, something would happen,
314
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3818
Baina noizean behin, oso gutxitan, zerbait gertatzen zen,
15:57
and one of these performers would actually become transcendent.
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3512
eta antzezleet akore bat garrantzitsua egiten zen.
16:00
And I know you know what I'm talking about,
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2284
Eta nik badakit zuek badakizuela zertaz ari naizen hizketan,
16:02
because I know you've all seen, at some point in your life, a performance like this.
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guztiok noizbait ikusi duzuelako horrelako zerbait.
16:06
It was like time would stop,
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Denbora geratuko balitz bezala zen,
16:08
and the dancer would sort of step through some kind of portal
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dantzaria portal moduko batetik pasatzen zen
16:11
and he wasn't doing anything different than he had ever done, 1,000 nights before,
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eta ez zuen beste mila gauetan egin zuenetik desberdintzen zuen ezer egiten
16:15
but everything would align.
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baina guztia lerrokatzen zen.
16:17
And all of a sudden, he would no longer appear to be merely human.
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Eta bat-batean, ez zirudien gizaki sinple bat.
16:20
He would be lit from within, and lit from below
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Argizkatua zegoen barnetik eta azpitik
16:23
and all lit up on fire with divinity.
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eta guztia argiztatua zegoen jainkotartasunez.
16:26
And when this happened, back then,
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Eta hau gertazten zenean, garai horietan,
16:29
people knew it for what it was, you know, they called it by its name.
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jendeak bazekien zer zen, badakizue, eta bere izenez deitzen zuten.
16:33
They would put their hands together and they would start to chant,
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Eskuak elkartu eta kantatzen hastzen ziren
16:35
"Allah, Allah, Allah, God, God, God."
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"Allah, Allah, Allah, Jainkoa, Jainkoa, Jainkoa."
16:40
That's God, you know.
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Hori da jainkoa badakizue?
16:43
Curious historical footnote --
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Datu historiko bitxi bat -
16:45
when the Moors invaded southern Spain, they took this custom with them
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Moroek Espainiar hegoaldea inbaditu zutenean, eurekin eraman zuten ohitura hau
16:50
and the pronunciation changed over the centuries
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eta ahoskera aldatu zioten mendeen poderioz,
16:52
from "Allah, Allah, Allah," to "Olé, olé, olé,"
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“Allah, Allah, Allah" "Olé, olé, olé,"izatera pasatu zen.
16:55
which you still hear in bullfights and in flamenco dances.
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Gaur egun zezen plazatan eta dantza flamenkoetan entzuten da.
16:58
In Spain, when a performer has done something impossible and magic,
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Espainian norbaitek ezinezko edo majikoa den zerbait egiten duenean
17:02
"Allah, olé, olé, Allah, magnificent, bravo,"
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“Allah, Allah, Allah" a "Olé, olé, olé, bravo"
17:05
incomprehensible, there it is -- a glimpse of God.
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esaten dute, ulertezina, hor dago jainkoaren irudia.
17:09
Which is great, because we need that.
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Barregarria dena, behar dugulako.
17:11
But, the tricky bit comes the next morning,
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Baina, zati zaila hurrengo goizean iristen da,
17:15
for the dancer himself, when he wakes up
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dantzariarentzat berarentzat, esnatu
17:18
and discovers that it's Tuesday at 11 a.m., and he's no longer a glimpse of God.
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eta ikusten duenean asteatrea dela eta goizeko 11ak eta jada bera ez dela jainkoaren irudia.
17:22
He's just an aging mortal with really bad knees,
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Belaunak gaizki dituen gizakia dela soilik ikusten duenean
17:25
and maybe he's never going to ascend to that height again.
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eta agian ez du inoiz lortuko berriro ere maila horretara heltzea.
17:29
And maybe nobody will ever chant God's name again as he spins,
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Eta agian inoiz gehiago inork ez du Jainkoaren izena esango birak ematen dituen bitartean,
17:33
and what is he then to do with the rest of his life?
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eta zer egingo du bere bizitzan gertatzen den beste guztiarekin?
17:36
This is hard.
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Hau zaila da.
17:37
This is one of the most painful reconciliations to make
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Sortzailearen bizitzako
17:40
in a creative life.
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adiskidetze mingarrienetako bat da.
17:42
But maybe it doesn't have to be quite so full of anguish
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Baina agian ez luke larritasunez betea egon behar,
17:45
if you never happened to believe, in the first place,
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zuek ez bazenuteke lehenengo
17:49
that the most extraordinary aspects of your being came from you.
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pentsatuko ezaugarri izugarrienak zuengandik etorriak direla.
17:53
But maybe if you just believed that they were on loan to you
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Baina agian sinetsiko bazenute iturri imajinaezin baten mailegua dela
17:56
from some unimaginable source for some exquisite portion of your life
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zure bizitzaren zati bat
17:59
to be passed along when you're finished, with somebody else.
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norbaiti amaitzean entregatu beharrekoa dela.
18:03
And, you know, if we think about it this way it starts to change everything.
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Badakizue, horrela pentsatzen badugu, guztia aldatzen hasten da.
18:08
This is how I've started to think,
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Horrela hasi naiz pentsatzen,
18:10
and this is certainly how I've been thinking in the last few months
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eta laster arriskutsu, nire arrakasta arraroaren
18:13
as I've been working on the book that will soon be published,
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aurrerapen beldurgarri bezala kaleratuko den
18:16
as the dangerously, frighteningly over-anticipated follow up
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nire liburuan azken hilabeteetan lanean aritu naizenean
18:20
to my freakish success.
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ere horrela pentsatu dut.
18:22
And what I have to, sort of keep telling myself
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Eta nire buruari esan behar diodana
18:25
when I get really psyched out about that,
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benetan urduri jartzen naizenean zera da,
18:27
is, don't be afraid.
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ez eduki beldurrik.
18:29
Don't be daunted.
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Ez larritu.
18:31
Just do your job.
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Zure lana egin soilik.
18:33
Continue to show up for your piece of it, whatever that might be.
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Jarraitu zure burua aurkezten zure zatia egiteko, dena delakoa izanda.
18:36
If your job is to dance, do your dance.
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Zure lana dantza egitea bada, egin zure dantza.
18:39
If the divine, cockeyed genius assigned to your case
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Jainkotiarra bada, zure kasuan lanean ari den geinu zentzugabeak
18:43
decides to let some sort of wonderment be glimpsed, for just one moment
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gauza miragarrirenbat begiztatzen badu, nahiz eta une batean soilik izan
18:48
through your efforts, then "Olé!"
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zure indarretatik egitne badu Ole!
18:50
And if not, do your dance anyhow.
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Eta bestela, egin ezazu zure dantza halere.
18:53
And "Olé!" to you, nonetheless.
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Eta Ole! Zuretzako modu guztietan.
18:55
I believe this and I feel that we must teach it.
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Honetan sinesten dut eta erakutsi behar dugula sentitizen dut.
18:57
"Olé!" to you, nonetheless,
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Ole! Zuri, modu guztietan,
18:59
just for having the sheer human love and stubbornness
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maitasuna edukitzeagatik soilik eta saiatzen
19:02
to keep showing up.
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jarraitzeko gizaki irmotasuna.
19:04
Thank you.
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Eskerrik asko
19:06
(Applause)
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(Txaloak)
19:08
Thank you.
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Eskerrik asko
19:09
(Applause)
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(Txaloak)
19:12
June Cohen: Olé!
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June Cohen: Ole!
19:14
(Applause)
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(Txaloak)
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Elizabeth Gilbert - WriterThe author of 'Eat, Pray, Love,' Elizabeth Gilbert has thought long and hard about some big topics. Her fascinations: genius, creativity and how we get in our own way when it comes to both.
Why you should listen
Elizabeth Gilbert faced down a premidlife crisis by doing what we all secretly dream of -- running off for a year. Her travels through Italy, India and Indonesia resulted in the megabestselling and deeply beloved memoir Eat, Pray, Love, about her process of finding herself by leaving home.
She's a longtime magazine writer -- covering music and politics for Spin and GQ -- as well as a novelist and short-story writer. Her books include the story collection Pilgrims, the novel Stern Men (about lobster fishermen in Maine) and a biography of the woodsman Eustace Conway, called The Last American Man. Her work has been the basis for two movies so far (Coyote Ugly, based on her own tale of working at the famously raunchy bar in New York City), and Eat, Pray, Love, with the part of Gilbert played by Julia Roberts. Not bad for a year off.
In 2010, Elizabeth published Committed, a memoir exploring her ambivalent feelings about the institution of marriage. And her 2013 novel, The Signature of All Things, is "a sprawling tale of 19th century botanical exploration."
Gilbert also owns and runs the import shop Two Buttons in Frenchtown, New Jersey.
Elizabeth Gilbert | Speaker | TED.com