Thought of the Day: “I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.” — Henry David Thoreau

October 29, 2025

There’s something deeply satisfying about Thoreau’s unapologetic preference for solitude, the idea that being alone and at peace is far more valuable than being surrounded by noise and pretense.

Most of us spend a good portion of our lives chasing the velvet cushion. It’s comfortable, sure, but it also comes with rules. You can’t sit however you want, you can’t stretch out, and someone’s always taking up more space than they should. It looks good on the outside, but it’s never truly yours.

The pumpkin, though, that’s different. It’s lumpy, it’s awkward, and it’s not exactly Pinterest-worthy. But it’s yours. It’s quiet. It’s real.

When Thoreau said he’d rather sit on a pumpkin, he wasn’t just being poetic. He was talking about choosing authenticity over comfort, independence over approval, simplicity over spectacle. The pumpkin doesn’t care what anyone thinks. It just sits there in the field, minding its own business, perfectly fine being a pumpkin.

I think about that whenever I find myself pulled toward something that looks good but feels wrong. The job that comes with a fancy title but drains your energy. The friendship that’s all small talk and no depth. The endless scroll that leaves you feeling connected to everyone but yourself. Those are the velvet cushions, polished but crowded.

The pumpkin, on the other hand, is the life you build when you stop caring what the crowd thinks. It’s the space you create for your thoughts, your creativity, your peace. Maybe that means saying no more often. Maybe it means fewer people but deeper conversations. Maybe it means turning off the noise for a while and letting silence do what it does best, remind you who you are.

There’s a kind of power in choosing the pumpkin. It’s not glamorous, but it’s grounding. It’s not impressive, but it’s honest. And if Thoreau were around today, I bet he’d still be sitting on that same pumpkin, looking around at all of us fighting for a spot on the velvet cushion and shaking his head.

Because when it’s all said and done, the pumpkin is peace.

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