For No Other Reason

My little one was sick all yesterday and needed me close. So I spent the day on the couch stitching Stupid Sock Creatures, one for him and one for me. His I had no problem justifying but mine?

I tried to look for some deeper meaning - was this a creativity totem, or perhaps an ode to creative life? At the end of the day though I had to admit to myself that this little critter (the one on the right) was made just for the fun of it.

Sometimes there is no other reason for doing things past the pure enjoyment of them. The trick is to allow them without having to make them into something more.

When have you enjoyed practicing enjoyment?

The Deeper Lesson

Will the tooth fairy come, she wonders out loud, followed quickly by the accusation - "Are you the tooth fairy?" Why are these traditions upheld, this questionable duplicity? Is there a deeper lesson that is being learned on a subconscious level? I feel better to think so.

Is she learning, on a level deeper than just the dollar the fairy will leave, that when we live through pain there are rewards to be had? Is this all about the spiritual power of sacrifice?

What pain have you lived through that offered great rewards afterwards?

Harry Potter - Part III (Formative Books)

My niece has been waiting (none too patiently) for two years for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to be released. Her wait is finally over and the book comes out now, on the verge of her adolescence. Whatever happens to Harry and his friends now will very likely affect her on subtle levels for the rest of her life.

My niece has grown up with Ron, Harry and Hermione, just as they have grown up. The books have matured as she has matured.

The story patterns established by the books may well influence her views on the world in much the same way that the story patterns of Lady Hawke, The Dark Crystal and Dragonslayer influenced me. The characters will be friends to her in much the same way that the characters from The Lord of the Rings books stay with me, even to this day. These patterns could find their way into her writing, into the stories she tells herself about herself and into the circumstances she finds herself longing for.

This book is big for her.

What books were formative for you?

Harry Potter - Part II (Impromptu Community)

So what do you do to pass the time while waiting better than two hours to buy the latest Harry Potter book? You make friends with the people standing on line with you, of course. And sometime around midnight, when things started to break down due to lack of sleep, we all started playing the ABC’s of Harry Potter. (You know, A for Albus, B for Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans…We knew it was late when the youngest among missed M. Thank you, Billy for reminding her that M is for Magic!)

So here’s to impromptu community, wherever we may find them!

Where do you find impromptu community?

Harry Potter - Part I

Why stand on line for an hour and a half to get a bracelet to buy a book? Why suffer through and hour and a half of being bored out of our gourds with 3 kids in tow? Why lose precious sleep to then stand on line again at midnight, finally making it home some time around 1am?

For Harry Potter, of course.

Well, no, not entirely. It was just as much for the experience of the cultural phenomenon. It was for the excitement of being a part of something big and joyous with a lot of other like-minded people, and to be able to say “I was there.” It was about standing next to my niece, now 12, for whom this moment and this last book are monumentally important. And to be part of a hugely successful marketing plan, knowing full well that I am their demographic, and reveling in it!

The release of the book, the last book, is a once in a life-time event and my daughter will remember it. One day she’ll recall the sacrifice of staying up way past her bedtime and struggling with exhaustion the next day (along with so many other people) and be able to say “Yeah, when I was eight my mom took me to the Midnight Madness Party and it was pretty cool.” It will be yet another anecdote, another quick story to relate who she was, and who we were together, during this time in her life. And that may be my truest reason for wanting to experience the cultural phenomenon of Midnight Madness.

What cultural phenomenon are you passionate enough to lose sleep over?

The Importance of Being Soot (or spirituality from an eight year old point of view)

Soot isn't just a sock creature - he's a Stupid Sock Creature, a la John Murphy. Soot has been my daughter's constant companion since he was sewn together by her and her buddy two weeks ago.

How is Soot spirituality? How does this odd looking critter count as a spiritual practice?

Soot is a spiritual practice because story is a spiritual practice and Soot is "living" story - in my daughter's mind and heart he is. He has a background and a history; he has likes and dislikes; he "experiences" happiness and suffers from fears.

(I remember doing the same things when I was eight. I had complicated story lines and I learned the ins and outs of interpersonal relationships with my stuffed animals. I think all kids, to one extent or another, figure out the world through their toys.)

Soot is a spiritual practice because he is an external representation of her internal emotional landscape - he feels and expresses emotions she needs to express, or at the very least practice.

Soot is a spiritual practice because he allows her to develop compassion - seeing things through "his" eyes she practices the ability to see things from perspectives other than her own.

Soot is a spiritual practice because he helps her to figure out the world and her place in it, and that's the essence of all spiritual practices, isn't it?

Thinking back over your life, who or what was your Soot?

Jelly Bean

In our family when someone starts feeling jealous, we don’t make a big deal of it. The jealous one gets labeled “jelly bean” and gets a few extra hugs. It’s our family’s “secret language” way of saying “I understand that you’ve got some difficult emotions going on and you need a little extra love.” Our secret language works wonders; we rarely have severe bouts of jealousy.

We did suffer a mild bout recently, when my son saw his sister’s picture on the blog but not his. So, here he is, my Jelly Bean of the week…

What “secret language” phrases do you share within your family? In what ways do they make your life easier? What ones could you add?

Getting it...

I saw the strangest show at my daughter's camp the other day. It was modern dance, and so I expected odd. What we saw though was completely bizarre! Indescribable odd.

I think the biggest problem I had was that I knew that they were trying to tell a story but, for the life of me, I couldn't figure out what it was. I just didn't get it.

Seeing these dancers twitch around on the stage made me appreciate the importance of understanding something or someone, of "getting it." And perhaps even more importantly, the importance of being "got."

Who "gets" you?

Questing for Questions

The first thing out of my mom's mouth is gonna be "So, what exactly is a blog, anyway?" But I'm prepared for that: Mom, a blog is (generally speaking) an on-line journal. Seeing as I'm a journaler, this little bit of technical wonder and I should be a match made in heaven!

One of the practices that's been instrumental in turning my journaling from a long string of fruitless complaints to a vehicle for spiritual growth has been learning how to ask better questions.

I've found that the mind is very cooperative. Not only does it believe what we tell it, it dutifully answers any question we put to it. If I ask questions like "What's wrong with me?" or "Why am I so stupid?" my mind will provide a detailed list in answer. Subtle shifts in the nature of the questions I ask, both on the page and in my mind, can greatly increase the quality of my thinking and, therefore, my life.

In that spirit, each of these entries will end with a question, a jumping off point. A question to get you thinking, pondering, wondering and maybe, hopefully, even writing.

How are your questions?

New Endeavors

I started a blog once before; the only problem was it wasn't on the computer. The first mailing was a wonderful chapter from a book by Francesca Block, a retelling of the Cinderella fairy tale. It was sent anonymously, via snail mail, to arouse curiosity.

A week later I sent out the letter that explained it all - the concept of sharing ideas and literature and culture. The hope of building a sense of community.

It lasted all of three mailings.

Here's hoping this little foray in community and story goes a little better than the last did.


What is it the right time for in your life?