"We are all wanderers on this earth...our hearts are full of wonder, and our souls are deep with dreams." ~ Gypsy proverb

Friday, August 2, 2013

delight and the looking glass


I've been quite the shepherd lately, a herder (possibly a hoarder) of unharnessed delight.

To name a few, little things, as they always are:

This book I'm reading.
This festival last weekend, full of pickers, fiddlers, foot stompers, dancers and musicians--memories that will serve as my musical muse for months to come...
This new to me music that had the entire field of festivarians up on their feet dancing.

Real Old Mountain Dew by Carolina Chocolate Drops on Grooveshark
Banjo Dreams / Jalidong by Carolina Chocolate Drops on Grooveshark


And lastly, the hummingbirds visiting our new feeder at the kitchen window. Most birds bring me joy, but these flutterers bring utter awe to everyone in my family.

Good things happen all the time, but delight happens when the child inside stirs and takes over thought and limb--like an ignition switch to heaven on earth. I am addicted to this kind of delight. When this child breathes fresh air, it is the closest I ever get to the sweetness that is an unfettered soul.

Soul talk, you know I love to. Recently I discovered that there is a name for my idealistic musings. A romantic. I do believe the darkest things about this human life, this human world, can be tempered, remedied and reconciled by the goodness of humanity, despite our flawed natures and self-destructive ways. I do believe that all of us have a way out of the complex maze that is our mind. Darkness is hinged to light no matter how often despair takes hold. Two sisters of the same seed. Delight, joy, beauty, creativity, imagination, the appreciation and pursuit of these things provide the nectar of life, the things that we cannot live without. No matter what we do with our lives, is it not the nectar we always hunt for, tangible or imagined? I relish in experiencing feelings and emotions, seek to understand them, look to nature for some explanation, and hunger for intuitive musings, maybe even as signs from a distant beyond. Idealistic--yes, blinded--maybe, naive---sometimes, with a child's heart and an open mind, certainly, I try. I try to enjoy what I have, with all that I am, now, here, and today. My greatest fear is to be that grumpy old woman full of spite, wondering how time has whittled me down to bare nubs cloaked in worn, leathery skin. I have no desire to live a long life without the joy to fill it's marrow. And may that joy be revealed to me in all ways, no matter when the night falls.

I must have spent half my day yesterday watching the hummingbirds, waiting for them, listening for that trill.  At one point there were five of them swooping--dancing and floating, as I watched them delightfully from behind the glass. I was frozen for minutes at a time as they hovered, perched, then hovered again, even watching me, too, through the same looking glass.



Delightful weekend to you all, dancers, hoverers, idealists, and romantics or not!!
xoxo

4 comments:

  1. Loving these words "I have no desire to live a long life without the joy to fill it's marrow." Oh yes, my friend I understand your romanticism. Plenty of times I have been told how "young" I seem and I believe it is due to wanting to grab hold of every shining moment. AS I believe those of us that realize the depth of life are ancient and know what really matters in life is now. I am having difficulty in people trying to exploit my "youthfulness" and make it into vulnerability, which has happened in the past and now I am more keenly aware of it. Keep on enjoying the splendour of summer and those fluttering beings! xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am so happy life is good in your world MJ. I sat yesterday and watched a hummingbird at my rosemary, they are such special creatures. I love you photo!

    ReplyDelete
  3. lovely post. it's too late to wish you a nice weekend, so I wish you a nice monday instead. life is good!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. That picture is stunning! No wonder you have been captivated by the hummingbirds....sometimes seeing something so closely, so carefully actually frees us up to notice other things with great intensity and appreciation as well, don't you think?

    Hugs to you,
    Claudine

    ReplyDelete

“Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
~ George Bernard Shaw