Three things

Adrift

The Yogic sages say that all the pain of a human life is caused by words, as is all the joy.  We create words to define our experiences and those words bring attendant emotions that jerk us around like dogs on a leash.  We get seduced by our own mantras (I’m a failure… I’m lonely… I’m a failure… I’m lonely… ) and we become monuments to them.  To stop talking for a while, then, is to attempt to strip away the power of words, to stop choking ourselves with words, to liberate ourselves from our suffocating mantras.

~ Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat, Pray, Love

Adrift II

Over the past several months I’ve been nominated for a variety of blog awards, and I have acknowledged them but rarely played along as I feel as though I’ve already answered the questions or posted well more than seven things about me, and if not, those things eventually come out somehow in my daily writing.

Thorny

Then I got to thinking that there are some things about me that might not come through so I decided it was time to tell you a few things about me you might not know.

Oh hai

#1  I bruise easily.  It’s true in the physical sense, but also in the emotional sense.  A wrong look, a harsh gesture, or an insensitive gathering of words hurled through the air or cyberspace can be painful.  I had hoped to be a bit thicker skinned by this point in life, or at least have the ability to let things of this nature roll off my back the way they say water rolls off the back of a duck.  I am sure there are reasons why it’s good to be a sensitive soul.  I’m just hard pressed to come up with them today.

Waiting for breakfast

#2  I love a friendly debate, and often get overenthusiastic about some issues.  I suppose that might come across as being argumentative or like a dog with a bone, unable to let go.  I have found it’s more difficult to have a friendly debate via the written word.  The lack of body language clues can lead to confusion and misunderstandings.  Even though I have learned this lesson over and over again, I continue to repeat the mistake of trying to engage in intelligent debate and exploration of what might be construed as controversial issues.  Mea culpa.

Tangled

#3  I try not to compare myself with others because that path leads to a waning of self-confidence in my own abilities, skills, and talents, and/or envy of what others have that I don’t have either because I cannot afford it (a high-end camera, for example) or I never really wanted it until someone else pointed out that they are somehow better than I am because they do have it.  Oh, I know that’s silliness, and eventually I get over it, but it’s best not to go there in the first place, don’t you think?

Twisted

So there you have it.  Three things you might not have known about me.  A fourth, and this one I think you do know, is that I use my photography and my words to get in touch with and work with the so-called negative emotions.  Stress, hurt feelings, anger, even illness play a role in my images at times.  I find it easier to be with and understand that which I can visualize in some form.

Duality

There are times, though, when it’s best to put aside the words and images, and just be for a while.  A time to retreat and, as the opening quote mentions, liberate myself.

A sunbeam lands in the woods

I’ll be back in a day or two or three.  It depends on how quickly I work my way through some stuff.  Nothing serious, mind you.  That’s part of the problem, you see.  Seriousness.  It will be good to lighten up, on all levels.  That’s a fifth thing about me:  I sometimes allow the seriousness and stress of others to rub off on me.  Not a good practice, and not one I do consciously, but it does lead to a better sense of empathy in the end.

Downtime

Thank you all so much for your visits, your likes, and your comments.  I’ve been trying to answer comments today, and return a few of your visits.  After today, I’ll be on retreat, enjoying the wonderful weather we’ve been having, taking walks around the pond and into the woods, meditating and spending time on the yoga mat, and watching the sunrise and sunset.  I might even hop on my bike and take a long ride.  I will try very hard not to sneak in just to peek at your blog or my blog or any blog.  But I’m not making any promises.  lol!

Wishing you wonderful-filled days, delightful evenings, and peaceful nights.  I hope you find a little time to Just Be, too.  🙂

Riding off into the sunset

The way is not in the sky.  The way is in the heart.

~ Buddha

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