| Floating Like a Leaf in the Stream | 5 comments |
  8 Apr 2008 @ 16:47, by David Bartholomew[excerpted from DoingIt!, October, 2005] It was a morning on the cusp. One zig where I could have zagged and the day might have been lost… or at least very different. Not as productive, not as… zen. Certainly not as fun to observe myself being moved around the gameboard. It was the day after a pretty peak day, and I know that sometimes such days are letdown days. Knowing this I also know I do what I can to not devote any energy to them having to be that way. This being a couple day’s after a long journey… prior to a job requiring my complete attention… and with more than enough nervous energy devoted to each, I allowed myself to sleep-in a bit before even thinking about diving into my relatively long “to do” list. My head was in a place I recognize, generally: with an awareness of the universe swirling around me and possibilities present to coax me with their almost imperceptible touch should my senses be tuned finely enough to move with that energy. I was beginning to feel much like the wooden planchette that group energy moves around the Oujia board; which was ok, since I trust that only benevolent spirit directs me (and usually doesn’t just mess around and make me spell out cuss words!). In popping on the tv for some background noise as I was getting dressed I stumbled on a “great, little movie”—my favorite genre. “Jump Tomorrow” was this little independent movie set at the same off-kilter pace as my morning. I couldn’t tear myself away, and knowingly allowed that this was my new first stop on the day’s appointed rounds. As “Jump Tomorrow” fulfilled its promise to the last frame I headed out to find someone to suss out a problem with my computer. The most amazing set of eclectic music was on the radio, down in the college band end of the spectrum, and this filled my head to the degree that there was seemingly no separation between me, my thoughts and the the second half of the double-feature— the movie I viewed through my windshield as I made my rounds through the San Fernando Valley. I have to say that I love it when sights, sounds, all senses are absorbed in an experience where there is no distance between observer and observed—where I am spectator and participant all at once. I have known this place in the audience while watching the choreographed lights, sounds, sensations of a Cirque du Soleil performance, in the midst of a massive crowd dancing to the African rhythms at a Bhundu Boys concert, swimming or diving for long periods amidst brilliant , shimmering ocean life… and this is a place I strive to function from at all times. A lofty goal, but I believe, doable. As we look for signs of life gelling with us in the middle of it all, like a mandarin orange slice or maraschino cherry suspended in a whipped jello mold, the universe engages us in this playful dance. From here we can only appreciate our fellow pineapple chunks and mini-marshmallow friends caught up in the perfection of this batch of ambrosia, this moment. The more I play with this, the surer I am that joy has no limits, and our full range of expression and appreciation can be brought to bear on all of the nuances of life. Savor anything that is not the most optimum experience you would ask for… because it is these things that make the payoff of the synchronous moments and days all the sweeter. Relish the richness and complexity, happenstance and subtlety. This is the show that is being performed for our enjoyment. “Jump Tomorrow” had a great soundtrack that included a catchy tune called “Life’s a Beach” by Touch and Go. The lyrics went like this: “A wave hello, A wave goodbye. The way we live, The way we die. Life's a beach, Life's a beach…” Other, less optimistic of our fellows claim “Life’s a bitch, then you die.” And so it is-- for each of us to choose: life as beach or bitch. Either way, the clock turns and days pass. We can see circumstances as being generally in our favor, or constantly against us. For me there is no question which way becomes the easier, more fulfilling path. From here you are DoingIt! as you open up to those little shortcuts, detours, sidetracks, that might take you a bit further out of the way of your appointed rounds, but what a refreshing change it can be. We all get there in the end, so why sweat it? … And a light trumpet solo puts a lilt in or step (Touch) and helps us stroll on into the twilight of our days (and Go)… |