Monday, April 21, 2008

I've Committed Myself

1. I sent in my deposit for school a few days ago. I've committed myself!

2.


Purple Oasis



It's a gorgeous day. Global Warming has brought Spring to this corner of the world a bit early this year. I keep waiting for the temperature to drop back down to 40 (degrees, Fahrenheit), but so far the warmth seems to be sticking. Walking to the coffee shop this morning: Birds: twitter-twitter, chirp chirp, squeak; Flowers: little purple clusters atop 6" electric green stems, teeny-tiny daffodils (which are probably not technically called "daffodils" but look just like 'em), a carpet of purple spreading across a lawn, barely thawed for just a couple weeks (This carpet blooms every year, a little magical oasis in an otherwise average neighborhood), clusters of broad tulip leaves hinting at their blooms yet to come, and buds on trees. Buds on trees! What an amazing moment this is... the first time one sees, all of a sudden, buds on the trees. Little tiny green things. Different for each tree. Different shapes, colors, densities. They POP out, as if from nowhere, all of a sudden this brown/grey armature, which has stood silent for the length of winter, stretches out and yawns. A great big loud yawn followed by a sigh. A sigh of release. The release of the little buds that tell us life is happening again. That the Sap is flowing. That the Story continues. 

Speaking of Stories...

3. I've been watching "Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth with Bill Moyers". It's a PBS series that was produced in the late 80's. It's kind of like storytime for adults. It's fabulous. Bill Moyers sits in for the everyday person as he probes  (the late) Joseph Campbell to talk about the truths that he's come upon during his lifelong search for deep human meaning, and connectivity between cultures. Campbell has met the mysteries of life, he's heard the human stories, he's seen beyond the bounds of the everyday and he speaks about what he's learned very openly and enthusiastically. - This collection requires listening, as it is primarily a documented conversation, although some topics are illustrated with images and documentary footage. The major themes it explores are: "the need for modern myths that fit our changing world, people's search for a hero in their everyday lives, the role of love, romance and sacrifice in myth and in practice, and the concept of eternity in the context of various religions" (from the description on Netflix). This series, or excerpts of it, would be a great supplement to any liberal arts class, and to any person's life in general. Joseph Campbell shows us that all human beings have the same core challenges and questions, and respond to the mysteries of life in remarkably similar ways.






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