Scattered thunderstorms dancing through the region with flash and vigor delay my plans to go hiking. I was hoping to spend time reflecting on what I'd like to share this week and tend to write better once I've spent some time outside.
Lately my ideas and inspirations have been coming in short unfinished bursts. Sounds, light, colors, images and movements-- so many pieces of things that I feel need more time to live in my body before anything articulate and creative can emerge.
I do office work through the afternoon, my senses tuned towards the window, searching for any shifts in the weather that may indicate that the thunderstorms have fully passed.
The sky finally clears with just enough time on this summer day for me to head directly to one of my favorite trails. I let my thoughts "about" what I might write settle into and move with my body along the rather steep and rocky terrain, already almost dry in the August heat. I reflect on my day and the surprise of feeling like I have enough time for everything, from leisure to work to the unexpected, and everything in between.
I feel how the thunderstorms, their rain still dropping through the canopy of trees whenever a soft breeze passes through, show me that sometimes "finished" is a series of bursts-- of color, sound, and movement.
my "scattered thunderstorms" in images and words....
PERSPECTIVES: the slightest shift in my position on the rock beneath me as I view the landscape through the lens of my camera changes whether I notice the textures of the pine needles in the foreground, the wave of the tree trunk on one side, or the mountain peering back at me in the distance.
I am reminded of my reflections this past week on how I can never really know what someone else's motivation, understanding or experience of a situation may be, that whatever my position is, I can shift ever so slightly and have the opportunity to perceive differently and perhaps connect more clearly to the other person. What questions might I ask to invite relationship?
I also recognize that a shift in perspective does not change the essence of who I am, merely the possibilities for relationship that emerge when I am curious and engaged with the world around me.
LIFE-DEATH-LIFE CYCLES: ruminating on two conversations from last week about mortality and the ways in which I can deepen my understanding of my own mortality by hearing others share about their own questions, fears, and challenges.
A SEED OF AN IDEA: choosing to hear my own thoughts and feelings about a new idea for awhile before I share it with anyone else. There's something about keeping a secret with myself that excites and enlivens my imagination....I walk through the world holding this small seed of an idea, bringing it with me everywhere I go, and listening for its small whispers for awhile.
The right time to share this new idea will arrive, but until then, I keep it in the pocket of my heart, pulling it out from time to time and holding it in the palm of my hand.
Aaaahhhh, the fresh, sweet and singularly whole presence of new life.
PATHWAYS OF DESCENT: I continue to be deeply affected by spending time with the full report on The Legacy of Lynching in America. I weep each time I read about a past that is far more recent than I had previously imagined. I weep each time I read-listen-view the stories of so many men and women who are courageous enough to descend into horrific traumas, call forth honest and difficult conversations, invite and stay committed to creating new foundational structures that truly support and honor life. I have so few words to share beyond the above....For now I continue my commitment to walk side by side with those willing to travel pathways of descent.