TIME

ERIC'S POST

TIME

Better late

Than never

 

This is a motto

Some live by

 

But they are always late

To a time we have agreed upon

 

I'm on time

Almost always on time

 

It's my motto

I don't like theirs

 

 

Some people seem to feel like it is their right to always come late. It's like they feel entitled. If I am late you should understand over and over again. Once in awhile is OK. Habitual lateness irks me. We have a plan. If you cannot make the plan then don't make it or change it as we make it. Most of the people in my current life are respectful of our joint commitments. I am grateful for this. 

 



Meandering in Mazy Motion

Lesley's Post

Recently I watched a movie on the life of Diane Vreeland and loved the way she lived with an amazing intensity and had a career during which she was extraordinarily creative. She worked very hard but at the same time pushed the boundaries of the possible and clearly thought and behaved "outside the box".

Now I don't imagine that I can be like this one of a kind person, and I don't actually want to because I am aware that everything has it's downside and dark side. But in the wake of seeing the movie I went to a store owned by a friend and "unconsciously" bought a hot pink shapely outfit, quite unlike something I would usually purchase. It felt like I was exploring an "out of the box" part of myself in just a very small way. It seemed as if I had wandered into a little bit of wildness.      

The Poem "Kubla Khan" is a favorite of mine and I especially love the line,
                  "Five miles meandering in a mazy motion".
According to the dictionary the word "meander" means to take a winding or indirect course; wander aimlessly; ramble. "Mazy" means full of confusing turns, passages; like a maze.

Throughout most of my life I have developed goals and plans that have guided my life and when Plan A did not work, then I would develop Plan B or C until I found a way through the difficulty or crisis. It has been the opposite of "meandering in mazy motion" or living in the wildness and yet for the most part it has worked. After much education, I have had a meaningful career as a psychologist, mostly in private practice, planned wonderful vacations, for myself and others, and had a well organized home life. It has been good and I feel very blessed.

Now in my sixties and entering the retirement years, I feel drawn to live somewhat differently with less goal direction and outcomes and more meandering and enjoying the process. It is proving to be a challenge. It is hard to stand in the face of the dark side of being a planner, the guilt and the "shoulds" that can raise their ugly heads when I am not busy with some productive, goal directed behavior.

But I am determined to join the "Wanderers" of this world who journey to explore the unknown regions of the landscape, both internally and externally, where the wildness of us still remains waiting for us to arrive. And I hope that Carol Pearson is right in her book "The Hero Within" when she writes in the chapter "The Wanderer", "Indeed, the Wanderer ultimately teaches us to be ourselves - to be fully true to ourselves in every moment." When I ask myself "What do I deeply desire?", it is just that - to know my true self and be that in every moment. 

So, I hereby commit to meandering in mazy motion, wandering and rambling through my life, freeing myself to discover all I can about my internal and external landscape. And I trust that there is a way to be both pleasantly organized with plans and wander merrily into the wildness.       

WAITING

Eric's Post 

Waiting for

The movie to start

 

Waiting for

The food to arrive

 

Waiting for

The sun to come up

 

Waiting for the future

Loses the present moment

And what is happening now

 

In waiting sometimes

We want something else to be happening

 

Now is happening

Seizing that moment

Captures the present opportunity

 

 

Waiting is a natural part of living. Sometimes when we are waiting we miss the opportunites of the present moment; opportunities for meaningful conversation, activities and achievements. Looking to the future for satisfaction or fulfillment may place unrealistic expectations on the future moment to bring pleasures that are never realized.

 

As a boy I remember "waiting" for days to open my Christmas presents and often being disappointed at the results. That "waiting" period was almost torturous and I missed opportunities for enjoying myself. Early in my adult life I realized that "now" is a gift and endeavored to live increasingly in the place of the moment.

Some people put off joy and satisfaction to the future by saying, "When this happens ..... " I can relax or feel better. Sadly they miss all the moments in between.

 

So, let's seize the moment, the "NOW" opportunity as we wait.