“You look 30!” she said, and a certain gladness filled my heart. And almost instantaneously a denial made its way from my mind. But this time, it did not pass my lips. Instead I smiled and thanked her, for the kindness she’d shown and grateful for the uplifting moment. It is alright to receive praise, … Continue reading praises & criticisms
Remembering Mary Oliver, and her poem which changed my life…
Graham Greene said,
A story has no beginning or end: arbitrarily one chooses that moment of experience from which to look back, or from which to look ahead.
And so is the narrative of our life. The choice of that moment of experience will colour our future, and the memory of our past.
Which moment of experience defines our past, or will define our future? Which moments of experience are the reference points for the narrative you call life?
One narrative which particularly impacts us is our romantic relationships and the commitments we make because of it. It brings to the fore memories, hopes and dreams because of a shared vision.
I came across this poem titled ‘The Journey’ by Mary Oliver which speak to the journey of a relationship.
Here is a Soundcloud audio track of The Journey read by MJ Hummingway.
I posted another poem, by David Whyte…
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As we head into 2019... The 2018 word of the year selected by dictionary.com is “misinformation”, and defined as “false information that is spread, regardless of whether there is intent to mislead”. It is to be distinguished from “disinformation” which is intentional and deliberate. Worth checking out this video. Oxford Dictionary chose “toxic” as its … Continue reading Into 2019…
"Just as there exists in writing a literal truth and a poetic truth, there also exists in a human being a literal anatomy and a poetic anatomy. One, you can see; one, you cannot. One is made of bones and teeth and flesh; the other is made of energy and memory and faith. But they … Continue reading The truths
I re-read "Eat, Pray, Love" following a conversation with a girlfriend. This Elizabeth Gilbert memoir swept the world, well the Western world, by storm in 2006 when it was published. I read it then, was rather nonplussed, and shelved the book in my collection. I had no idea why I was compelled to re-read it … Continue reading Eat.
Are you the new person drawn toward me? To begin with, take warning, I am surely far different from what you suppose; Do you suppose you will find in me your ideal? Do you think it so easy to have me become your lover? Do you think the friendship of me would be unalloy’d satisfaction? … Continue reading Are you the new person drawn toward me?
Spending a weekend learning about camera and sound recording doesn’t leave much room to ponder about life. The session though was informative and creative… lots of fun. In video recording terms, sounds are either signal or noise. There is a measurement – a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) that works for any recording. SNR is used to … Continue reading Signal/noise… life
I’ve been breathing a lot lately. The deep inhale, tell-my-self-everything-is-alright kind of breath. It’s something I’ve learnt over time to be effective to lower the blood pressure, to calm the heart rate, to calm the mind or so it seemed. And it made me look like a fish out of water, gasping for air. Perhaps … Continue reading Gasping for air… exhaling
What an amazing movie, and it's not just the stars. Big names like Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga do sell movies. As did Kris Kristofferson and Barbra Streisand in the previous production of the same name about 40 years ago (and I feel really old now 🙂 ). And there were 2 previous versions to … Continue reading A Star Is Born
Most Christians I have met are helpful and friendly. Few are malicious or vicious. Many are non-judgmental. Yet many have also adopted a posture of being “the chosen ones”, the ones who know best - of what is godly, what is deemed acceptable, what is right, and their judgments of those who don’t ascribe to … Continue reading What’s your story?
What does your travel mean? Not the meaning of travel, in general rather what each travel, each trip you take by yourself, or with your friends or family… what did each mean for you? I was reading a John Donohue poem and it occurred to me, that the trips I’ve taken, particularly in later years, … Continue reading What does your travel mean?
The final poem in David Whyte's new book "The Bell and the Blackbird". For me, a contemplation of home and the journey to belonging to yourself, the quiet subterranean ways in which we meet our sense of leaving and arriving, what we carry with us and which makes us half a shade braver. What is … Continue reading Leaving the Island, poem by David Whyte
Note to self: pay attention to the road. But the random thoughts... Driving along, and noticing council workers “trimming” flora that lined the side of the roads. “Trimming” in this instance was in fact a savage cutting down to create a straight short edge ensuring little or none impeded the thoroughfare of pedestrians and vehicles. … Continue reading Artificial interventions
Do you know what you don’t want? Well, I thought I did. Expectations and norms rule many lives. The “shoulds” of the world seep into our veins and we just are, unquestioningly. We perform mother or father as many have before us and amongst us. We go to work to cement our identity of worth … Continue reading Self-sabotage can be good
Meditation, mindfulness and a good therapist… that should set me straight for the rest of my life 😀 Seriously though, everyone needs a sounding board, someone who would listen without judgment and one whom we trust would do so, someone who knows us and gives us space and the occasional “push” for us to realise … Continue reading Back on the wagon
