Why I learn Latin as a hobby

Posted: 2025-03-01

There is something that I have noticed, where if you do something as a hobby, you're supposed to be good at it. If you do something, they say, do it right. This kind of thinking, I feel, kills creativity. It discourages exploration and experimentation. Maybe you are starting a new hobby, maybe you are trying out painting. Whatever it is, if we are not immediately good at it, we are made to feel like it is a waste of time. Like we are wasting time that could be employed more effectively, if we spent it somewhere else.

It raises interesting questions. Why should I spend my time effectively or efficiently? Why can't I do something for the sake of doing it? If it is not my day job, however I spend my off time should be free from judgement. Reminds me of this quote I have heard. Anything worth doing, it goes, is worth doing poorly.

This is why I urge people to create things. Create art, write stories, compose music, and pay no attention to how good or bad those things are. Just do it. Do it poorly and have fun. Kurt Vonnegut said it better:

“... Practice any art, music, singing, dancing, acting, drawing, painting, sculpting, poetry, fiction, essays, reportage, no matter how well or badly, not to get money and fame, but to experience becoming, to find out what's inside you, to make your soul grow... "

On another note, did you know that the word 'amateur' comes from Latin 'amare' (meaning to love) and 'amator' (meaning lover)?

It doesn't help that nearly everything today is geared to make more money. As much money as possible. If I am a software engineer, whatever I learn in my off time is supposed to be something that helps me advance further in my career. Something like Kubernetes, or Go, or something that is trending in the industry today, or whatever the latest tech buzzword is.

Me, I learn Latin. It is something that I will never use professionally, or personally for that matter. I do it for the joy of learning something new. There are no expectations. No deadlines or goals or leaderboards. If I feel like it is no longer fun, I can just stop learning it, and move on to something else. I previously tried to learn Japanese because I thought the letters looked cool. I followed it for a few months. When I felt like it wasn't as fun anymore, I stopped learning it.

Was the time I spent learning Japanese wasted? Only if you think that learning it was an investment. Then my investment had no payoff.

I get it. Society is competitive. Life is competitive. We are supposed to dedicate our time to develop skills that make us more employable. I have nothing against that. I do that too. But I firmly believe that, at least every once in a while, we should do things that make no sense. Do things just because I want to. With zero expectations and zero payoff, except having had a very good time. Everything in life is not a performance in front of an audience. I don't have to be good at drawing, or dancing, or writing (case in point) to actually engage in it.

So, while the rat race goes on, I will continue to do things just because I feel like doing it. Because, in a world which tries to optimize us in every way, it is a small act of independence and rebellion. It is a way to claim some time and space for myself.

This is why I learn Latin as a hobby.