I find it is easy to get carried away with this busywork, especially when I have a mountain of “real” work to tackle. All I want to do is drink coffee and read, and the “mountain” feels too high today. Yes, emails need to be read, the top (or a portion of it anyway) of my desk  needs to be cleared and papers do need to be put away. But I can’t avoid my work indefinitely, and a few quotes found their way to me as a gentle reminder.

It is not your obligation to complete your work, but you are not at liberty to quit.
— Talmud

Hmm. OK, Talmud, I get it. No quitting.

Do not undertake a project unless it is manifestly important and nearly impossible.
— Edwin Land

All right, Mr. Land. No matter how impossible my work may seem today, I did make the right choice to start it in the first place. I should carry on.

Back to the grindstone!