There is contemplation, a need for silence and a somewhat steady flow of life evaluation. Not the evaluation that dips deep into past traumas and events~ I've already done that and may do it some more~but now, in the soft summer of little deaths and quiet beginnings, it is rather a realization of choices and the puzzle-picture they have shaped over the span of not yet 48 years.
I am seeing in a more refined way, internally and externally. Both ways of seeing have stilled ambition. I know not if the ambition will return. What is rising and welling is the secret inner life that lay wounded and wanting under the pressure, the minute-by-minute pressure of the dictates of society, employment, family, America, and the psycho-savvy media. Like an aging circus performer, I have little will left to walk the impossible rope. It is all too much and the tears are too much and the secret inner life has not wanted any of it anyway, all along.
If I evaluate my choices or simply skim the timeline of my life, a theme and a truth rise like vapors over the unruly sea of not yet 48 years~ I like who I am. I have resisted the jamming of my round peg into that uniformly square hole becasue I enjoy my own company and find sustenance in the web of my own thoughts that know unequivocally I am made of the same fluid and light as the orioles, the maples, the starfish.
I have resisted the dictates at great expense and I have come to love that expense, for in exchange I like who I am, more.
I have sought all along a simple, yet meaningful life. I have sought all along to help ease the suffering of others and I know now that need not happen at the expense of myself. I know now that the red sea of societal chaos and forced sublimation can be parted by the secret inner self having risen to the surface, declaring love. On that dry sea bed, free of chaos and dictates, I walk forward, uninhibited, with this truth~ that the only approval necessary to live a simple and meaningful life is my own.
what a perfect image for these words.
ReplyDeletewalking the impossible rope. that, too, is an image. of life as it often is. i have an idea that the rope is also invisible and also much closer to the ground than we think. all smoke and mirrors and we don't understand that until we jump, arms outstretched to the sky, and safely land on our own two feet.
why are always surprised when we can stand?
love you much. much.
xoxo
Wonderful. Beautiful post. I like who you are too. And hopefully I will get back to the place of really really liking who I am. Somehow in the past 7 years of marriage, babies, multiple moves, and great lifestyle upheavals I've lost myself. Why is it so hard to know/love/be yourself when immersed in relationships? I always seem to lose ME. So I'm starting to work on that a little now.
ReplyDeleteLike you I crave a simple and meaningful life. I'm slowly getting there. Right now I'm working mainly on the simplifying aspect. That's why I'm not online as much, not blogging right now & commenting at blogs and on Facebook less. I needed a break and time to replenish. By My birthday in September I hope to begin adding more meaning with the creation of a new website/blog dedicated to creating a simple soulful life.
These attributes that you describe are what make you so very special. Setting the bar higher, leading by quiet, strong example. And, reaping the inner happiness and satisfaction that comes of leading a simple, meaningful life. Enjoy the rewards! :)
ReplyDeleteA resounding YES! that you can probably hear from where I sit.
ReplyDeleteI walk that line.
We all do, in our own way, I suppose.
And as always, the only direction is forward.
I think you exude that knowledge, that truth.