Day 51: What's new under the sun?

cutting up magazines to make collage "soul" cards, one of many 'new' things we can create


What’s new under the sun?

There is a saying, that “There is nothing new under the sun,” a saying that was spoken before computers and airplanes and global warming and raw chocolate pies.

So maybe there are new things under the sun, but whatever the phrases validity, you and I can both find some new ways of doing what we usually do.

Say brushing our teeth, another hand, standing on one foot, eyes closed, one side of the mouth first, singing while we do it, if any of these are new ways.

Sitting down into a chair. Hmm. That’s harder to discover new ways, and good, hard is good, it just means we have to think and even more, to pay attention, as we sit down. Maybe put a hand down first, or the other hand, or sneak up to the chair sideways and sit, or stand directly in front and cross one leg in front of the other and swivel down.

Don’t listen to me, discover some ways yourself.

Ways to read a book, standing, sitting, holding in one hand, lying down and it’s hanging from the ceiling, who knows?


And what about pathways to get across town.

Ways of introducing yourself.

Ways of reacting to another person who isn’t doing things that you want.

Ways of cheering up yourself or others that you haven’t thought of before, or haven’t tried.

And then: what ways have you played with before, so they aren’t totally “new under the sun,” but you’ve forgotten for a long time to pull them out and use them as variations and explorations in your life?

So today, play and explore and enjoy and learn and smile.

New Place, Tucson, good

in the air


airport at Tucson, nice long fun musical iPod wait


guest house for sweet stay


the neighborhood


in any place you can
i can drive myseelf
drove yourself
crazy

with the story
any story
of how What Is

ain't good enough

and then
as always to
notice
and come back
to

who am I
without the story:

sweet


ah

curve balls and strangeness

sometimes

and often

at just the "wrong times"

life throws you a curve
ball

the unexpected,
the strange

just what you "didn't want"

and then:

life means this:

what can I learn

what can I change
in the old habits
or responding

how much
learning,
fun,
amazement
can I get
out of this:

hey,
maybe even hit a home run

Parenting, Heaven and Hell, #1

A Parenting Ramble
will be published each Wednesday here at slowsonoma.com.
Freud called Parenting the impossible job.
Moshe Feldenkrais said the real work is
to make the
"Impossible possible,
the possible easy,
and the easy elegant."
Let us begin.

So, the little kids,
the happy babies,
the giggling toddlers,
the inquisitive younguns,
the fiesty and creative youth,
the beautiful and blossoming teens,
the friendly, courageous and happy youth

and so on.

Life with children
can be wonderful.

And we can help
with this,
as parents,
or formerly active parents,
or bystanders who can stand
or even like
kids, children, youth, young adults.

How can we help?
First:
slow down.
Surprise, surprise,
that idea coming in
this blog, eh?

Slow down how you drive your car
in general,
to remember to breathe
and to see the world as it passes by,
and slow down
when children are in it
so you don't crash
and
so they can learn that life
doesn't have to be a rush
and so
you can listen to what they
want to tell you
and so
you can take a breath
before
you say something back to them.

In the car
you
could
have your eyes on the road
and some attention on your children
and some
on your breathing,
if you can do all that,
you are teaching them how to participate
fully in life
and you and giving yourself happiness instead
of an ulcer
and you are practicing
being now

being now
is the greatest gift
you can give
either
yourself
or your children.

So next time you are in the same
room
car
yard
place
with them

slow down,
follow your breathing
look at them
and
listen to them

and see what blossoms
from those moments


ciao,
Chris

Learning by Copying, or Learning by Learning

We can watch
and follow:
monkey see,
monkey do

sometimes
following
someone who does
something really
well
(be happy,
move easily,
listen fully,
laugh at themselves)

can be one
of life's great gifts

and then
again,
if the yoga teacher
is five
times more limber
than we are
and we try to exactly copy
we'll hurt ourselves

if we
move
and just crank along,
following
exercise
or yoga
or the routine we've been assigned
we'll stay in action

but we won't learn

learning
only happens
when we slow down,
and realize and
feel
in our real selves,
a new way of doing or seeing
or feeling something

or thinking
about something
though a
confusion
of thinking and words
and jabber and thinking
and having facts/ numbers and so on
and knowing
is a huge mistake
in much of our lives
(though good for balancing the check book)

back
to learning:
it's a discovery
and un covery
a re covery
a finding
something new
or forgotten

new pieces
falling
together

a big picture
that fits

a new pathway
of moving or feeling
that's easier
and sweetier
and more pleasurable

and natural

this learning
really learning

is sweet
and

this brings
us to the present

this is the present
of learning

without this
life gets
stale
fast