"A book must be the axe for the frozen sea inside of us."
--Kafka, letter to Oskar Pollak, 1/27/04
"That which would give light must endure burning."
--Victor Frankel
"The true art of memory is the art of attention."
--Dr. Samuel Johnson
All of the above collected in Inviting the Wolf In: Thinking about Difficult Stories by Loren Niemi and Elizabeth Ellis
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
And Stacie wonders if I overthink things!?
1977
From a 1977 letter to my housemates:
Not meaning to sound too esoteric, etc., but Penny and I have been working a lot on what might be called aligning the subjective with the objective. We’ve been focusing on how we both shut each other out in fear when it’s really only our illusions we have to fear—not reality itself. It’s a hard process to break down the illusions because they’ve become part of us, even though they cause us to work against our best interests. And at the bottom of those illusions is perfectionism. Neither of us will really let go and trust the other person until she reaches perfection. In the meantime, though, there’s a lot we still want from each other—so we finally reach and ask, but in such a defensive, suspicious way that the desired results become highly unlikely. Slowly, we’re starting to break the patterns. That feels GOOD
From a 1977 letter to my housemates:
Not meaning to sound too esoteric, etc., but Penny and I have been working a lot on what might be called aligning the subjective with the objective. We’ve been focusing on how we both shut each other out in fear when it’s really only our illusions we have to fear—not reality itself. It’s a hard process to break down the illusions because they’ve become part of us, even though they cause us to work against our best interests. And at the bottom of those illusions is perfectionism. Neither of us will really let go and trust the other person until she reaches perfection. In the meantime, though, there’s a lot we still want from each other—so we finally reach and ask, but in such a defensive, suspicious way that the desired results become highly unlikely. Slowly, we’re starting to break the patterns. That feels GOOD
Sunday, November 29, 2009
what if we discover...
What if we discover that our
present way of life is
irreconcilable with our vocation
to become fully human?
--Paulo Freire
present way of life is
irreconcilable with our vocation
to become fully human?
--Paulo Freire
Self Portrait by David Whyte
It doesn't interest me if there is one God or many gods.
I want to know if you belong or feel abandoned.
If you know despair or can see it in others.
I want to know if you are prepared to live in the world with its harsh need to change you. If you can look back with firm eyes saying this is where I stand.
I want to know if you know how to melt into that fierce heat of living falling toward the center of your longing.
I want to know if you are willing to live, day by day, with the consequence of love and the bitter unwanted passion of sure defeat.
I have been told, in that fierce embrace, even the gods speak of God.
I want to know if you belong or feel abandoned.
If you know despair or can see it in others.
I want to know if you are prepared to live in the world with its harsh need to change you. If you can look back with firm eyes saying this is where I stand.
I want to know if you know how to melt into that fierce heat of living falling toward the center of your longing.
I want to know if you are willing to live, day by day, with the consequence of love and the bitter unwanted passion of sure defeat.
I have been told, in that fierce embrace, even the gods speak of God.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Great movie
OK, for me, the highlight was the 70s-era interview with the guy who believes Jesus was actually a mushroom. Not to offend, just gave me a big belly laugh.
in reference to: KNOW YOUR MUSHROOMS (view on Google Sidewiki)Monday, September 21, 2009
Tell Me Your Story
Tell me your story
tell it long and tell it loud.
Don't leave anything out.
I want to hear how you
came here,
I want to feel the pain of
your first love.
Tell me your ridiculous
jokes
and let me too cry at your
tell it long and tell it loud.
Don't leave anything out.
I want to hear how you
came here,
I want to feel the pain of
your first love.
Tell me your ridiculous
jokes
and let me too cry at your
wedding day.
Tell me your story
tell it long and tell it loud.
Don't leave anything out.
Throw in all your dark
secrets
so I see who you are.
So I can really feel your presence.
Take all the time you need,
we have the long hours
to laugh and cry
before the sun rises.
--Pedro McMillan
Tell me your story
tell it long and tell it loud.
Don't leave anything out.
Throw in all your dark
secrets
so I see who you are.
So I can really feel your presence.
Take all the time you need,
we have the long hours
to laugh and cry
before the sun rises.
--Pedro McMillan
Monday, August 31, 2009
The year ahead
I turned 59 this month. And so it begins. I did a 50th birthday celebration concert in my old stomping ground (Unitarian Universalist Church of Silver Spring, MD) back in 2000. And I plan to create a performance piece on turning 60. It began "officially" last week when I asked Stacie Chaiken to occasionally coach me in this process. Stacie and I lived in a women's group house in Springfield, OH back in the 70s, so she's the perfect choice.
I have one song, a digital story, and the start of a brief stand-up comedy routine, and the tarot reading that Pattie and I did for my coming year. Plus I actually like some of what I wrote last November for National Novel Writing Month. Good start!
I have one song, a digital story, and the start of a brief stand-up comedy routine, and the tarot reading that Pattie and I did for my coming year. Plus I actually like some of what I wrote last November for National Novel Writing Month. Good start!
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