QUIET

I love the depth of quiet in the early morning.  You hear things that may not be noticeable at other times of day.  The thud of a q-tip as it hits the floor of the sink; the hum of a light bulb and the roar of air conditioners outside the sliding glass door.  Layer upon layer of sound presents itself as you listen to the quiet. Humming, buzzing, ticking, the source of which you just can’t seem to identify. In each moment another layer is added; wheels, horns and beeps until soon the quiet is buried in a cacophony of sound. The day has begun. 

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

Sunday we returned from a wonderful vacation week in New York.  Four full days in New York City and four full days in Bridgehampton.  We stayed in a friend’s penthouse apartment in the city, went to a Broadway show and a Yankees game with four of the best seats in the house. Lots of walking and touring, delis and sightseeing, shopping and picture-taking.  

Another friend in the city on business was also joining us in the Hamptons. He had a car service so our ride to Bridgehampton was quite comfortable. We arrived for a chef-prepared lunch and the delight in reuniting with friends we hadn’t seen in awhile. Cocktails and hors d’oeuvres at 7:00pm.  

We have very generous friends. 

The next four days brought more chef-prepared meals, karaoke, pool-time, tennis, golf, boccie, massages, and lots more picture-taking.  As great as all of this sounds, do you know what my favorite part of the trip was?

In the city it was the early morning runs along the East River with my brother, his girlfriend and my best friend, Bruce. Then the evening dice games and hearts tournaments.  

In the Hamptons? It was coffee on the deck and the early morning runs to the beach followed by a few minutes of meditation. 

People have all sorts of ideas about what a trip to the “Hamptons” means.  Some think it’s a gaggle of hoity toity rich people having big parties and talking about each other.  (They watch too much TV).

For me it’s listening to the language of the wind and the ocean and the birds singing in the morning; the breeze blowing through the trees and the sound of the waves crashing on the beach.  It’s the explosion of hydrangeas everywhere you turn and the fields of corn reaching for the sun.  Most of all, it’s the joy of reuniting and catching up with good friends.  

Ritual, Tradition and My Grandson's Baptism

Today was grandbaby Kaleb’s baptism. Wikipedia defines “baptism” as “the ritual act, with the use of water, by which a person is admitted to membership of the Church.” Not to be confused with “christening” which is defined as “to give a baby a Christian name at baptism as a sign of admission to a Christian church.” 

I always wondered what the difference was.  Kaleb was given a Hawaiian name at baptism so I guess it doesn’t count as a “christening.”  So confusing.

We are so clueless when it comes to religious rituals.  We are at the front of the church, the ceremony is at the back. As we are “sneaking” to the back to see the baptism, I notice the good people of the congregation waving us along - like “it’s OK, it’s OK! So I’m trying to snap pictures while the guys in the green robes keep getting in the way.  (We all have our priorities). They recite their ritual verbiage while anointing the baby with oil in the middle of his forehead. Are they attuning the sixth chakra? Opening the third eye? How cool is that!

Just when I think it’s over it’s time to pour water on the baby’s head. How could I forget that part?  I’m so busy trying to get a good photograph that I’m not keeping track of the festivities. Finally, they finish up and we all go back to our seats. This is pretty much over, right? 

It was then it occurred to me that all of these people are actually there for Mass, not for the baptism of MY grandson. I’m actually at a Catholic Mass - how weird is that?? We are seated and realize everyone is standing - oops! Up we pop!  Then the choir is singing and I’m happily snapping pictures when I discover that everyone is singing and this is part of the program.  Oops again!  How loooong does this last? When do we eat? This is just not my territory.

Doesn’t the bible make some reference to “let them be like children”? Yet, the children who are laughing and being childlike are getting in trouble. I just don’t get it.

People are sleeping, reading, whispering to each other, looking around the room, bouncing crying babies and disciplining laughing children. Is anybody actually listening to the guy in the green robe? 

I guess there are many paths to walk and this is just one of them. All in all we enjoyed our day, interacted with many gracious people, and can now be assured that our grandson will be admitted to heaven. Amen. 

JUDGING, EXPECTATIONS AND THE OTHER ONE

According to Dr. Carolyn Myss there are three rules we must adhere to in order to allow our creativity to fully express through us: 1) Don’t judge,  2) Have no expectation, 3) I can’t remember this one but will look it up.

Of course, I apply all three of these to my creativity as a writer.  I think that it should flow easily and effortlessly and if it doesn’t, then maybe I’m not really meant to write - Sounds like an expectation.  

I’m usually quite sure that even if I do write, no one would want to read it or if they do they’ll criticize it, so what’s the point? - hmmm, definitely judging.

I am sure I am also breaking rule number three even though I don’t recall it right now.  

Plus, if anybody knows I want to be a writer, then won’t they expect me to write? Won’t they ask me about it and then I would be embarrassed if I hadn’t written anything? Worse yet, what if they want to actually read something I’ve written? What if they think it’s stupid or just not very good?  My stomach churns just thinking about putting myself out there like that.  I think this is another rule: Don’t worry about what others think.

Maybe I’m too hung up on everything being “easy and effortless.”  Is that such a bad thing?  Probably not, but it can certainly pose limits on what one would attempt.  

I’m inspired when I read about writers that had a hard time getting their piece down on paper. Nevertheless, I am reading it in some sort of widely disseminated publication so they must have overcome the difficulty. I realize that “easy and effortless” doesn’t always flow to other writers either and that maybe if I just push through, the words will eventually end up on the paper.  

Then, inevitably, I’ll read about the writer that has always written. They were writing stories when they were children, they wrote the school paper, became journalism majors and went on to write article after article or book after book.  It seems the words just flow from them like water in a stream. I think I just recalled another rule:  Don’t compare yourself to others. 

I’m beginning to see where my blockages lie.  I’m breaking ALL of the rules! 

Now I’m feeling that rock in the pit of my stomach when I ask myself whether or not I should post this to my blog.  Like anybody actually reads my blog! Hardly anybody even knows about it although I did post the link on Facebook a few months ago.  No comments, no followers, nobody interested. OR, they read it, thought it was crap and won’t ever subject themselves to THAT again.  

See, there I go: judging, expecting, and worrying about the outcome. Hey! That’s the third rule - don’t worry about the outcome (something like that).   

OK - I’ll post. 

Exercise "Experts"

Ok. I've had it with study after conflicting study on diet and exercise. Do these researchers ever actually work with real people on a daily basis? Recommendations from the "experts" can be so disheartening that it discourages people from exercising AT ALL. No matter what you do, or for how long, CONSISTENCY is the key. The main reason the studies conflict is because everyone is individual - different lifestyles, eating habits, stress levels, hormone changes, body types, allergies, and most significantly -  different filters and subconscious patterns. 

People need to know that ANY exercise along with better eating habits will result in weight loss and better health. Yes, I said better eating habits. Exercise alone won't cut it. Sorry, if you keep doing the same thing, you will keep getting the same result.

One step at a time, be patient with yourself, ask for help (personal trainer, nutritionist, friends, family, whatever) and appreciate even the smallest things about your body that are good, i.e. you can walk and breathe without assistance. Keep looking at where you want to be and you'll get there whether it's an hour a day or only 10 minutes a day. Just do something!

Hair? What hair? His eyelashes are gone now, too. Still has the brows!

It's ALLLLL ABOUT MONEY

I read a “Soul Inspirations” newsletter this morning and it suggests meditation as a means to calm your mind and come into alignment with your soul. Well, I have been meditating for many, many years and know it truly to be a path to peace and joy in my life.

The article describes a basic meditation by guiding the reader to “focus on your breath.” It further suggests that you choose a symbol to focus on with your “mind’s eye” or the “third eye” which is located between your eyebrows in the center of your forehead. Examples of symbols were “a flower, a religious symbol or icon, a single word or whatever is pleasing to you.”
So, what symbol do you think comes up for me?? A DOLLAR SIGN! Shit! It’s always about money, isn’t it?! Here I am feeling all spiritual and everything and the first thing that comes up for me is dollar signs – right in the middle of my forehead.