“Enough” Watercolor & charcoal 8 x 12″ © 2011 Jean Burman
Sometimes I get overwhelmed. You probably do too. [I think everyone does]
The modern world is fast becoming a crazy place. Social media doesn’t help. There are literally billions of people out there having their say. Crying out to be heard.
With so many voices… mine is just one more voice in the wilderness.
Yours too.
But you know what?
I decided this week… that the old rules still apply.
“The snow goose need not bathe to make itself white” Lao Tzu
I am enough. Exactly as I am.
You are enough. Exactly as you are.
If we are out there being ourselves and doing our best… it’s enough!
I talk a lot about Vincent Van Gogh here. I don’t really know why… except that I guess I see [in him] the struggles that I myself face. The struggles that all of humanity face. He’s kind of like the “pin-up person” for the human condition [grin] in a weird kind of way.
My friend Lance Ekum discussed being heard on his blog this week. The desire to be heard is no small thing. The need to be understood and have our ideas acknowledged… is even more of a challenge. This is the sticking point for us all I think… regardless of whether we are on the giving or receiving end.
But who cares anyway?
Palm Cove © 2011 Jean Burman
Getting back to basics is the best way to counter the feeling of “overwhelm” that pervades our lives today.
Step back… close the books… log off [and log out]… and whatever you do… stop all incoming!
Get down to the beach… shake out your towel… and sit right down on the sand.
[If you haven’t kicked off your shoes by now… do so immediately]
Look around. What do you see? What do you feel?
The sand is warm… the water is an excellent shade of emerald turquoise. The waves are lapping gently toward the shore. Can you hear them?
Now take a deep breath. What can you smell? Warm seaweed reaches my nostrils. I’m taken slightly aback by the memory of a hundred warm happy days spent on the sand as a kid.
Funny how our sense of smell can do that.
The water is shimmering as far as the eye can see… and I realise as if for the first time… that I need nothing more. Being here is enough.
It’s been a week of getting back to basics for me. Mindfully slowing down. Unwinding my mind. Remembering what’s important.
Life. People. Love. Friendship. Solitariness.
Honesty. Loyalty [especially to myself]
Forgiveness… [now there’s a big one!]
Simple things like humming in the shower. Walking on the sand. Taking note of the change in the sun’s direction as the season changes… and noticing the cooler early autumn air [it’s opposite here… and good enough reason for having your head in the clouds and your feet in the mud!]
As I paint I’ve been listening to my parent’s old record collection. The music of my childhood. I am reminded how important music has been in my life… and how much I miss it when I’m not making it.
I remember how the music is in me alongside the art… and the words… and I promise myself to once again find my voice.
The other one.
Not the one I write with.
Nor the one I paint with.
But the one that comes out of my mouth [hopefully sometimes in tune - grin] and accompanies the music that brings so much joy to my life.
Note to self: pick up your old guitar and thank it for the years of faithful service. Then place it gently in the corner and go out and buy yourself a new one [grin]… one with the neck not warped… the strings are all new… and it plays in tune. Then go sing your heart out.
I want to… I’ve decided.
I want to be all that I can be. For me. No-one else!
What the world thinks doesn’t matter.
What the world does… doesn’t matter either.
What matters is that I am doing what I love… to the best of my ability.
And you are doing what you do to the best of your ability.
Beyond that… well… who really cares?
I am what I am. You are what you are.
And [we] will always be enough!
Have your say here… what do YOU think?
As I finished writing this I discovered another common theme with my friend and fellow blogger Lance Ekum over at Jungle of Life. All I can say is great minds think alike… [not saying I'm a great mind [mind you]… but Lance is and I really like his blog so you can take a look at what he had to say about this here on this link] but don’t forget to comment HERE first!
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