Life on the Edge

Happy solstice day to all those interested in celebrating this day. I guess this would include most Christians as Christmas is basically a rewrapping of the gift of the promise of "light". Whether the sun, or your favourite image of the divine, this day and the days to come, offer all of us a chance to honour all harbingers of light and reflect on the blessing of being born into such a magnificent creation that is this universe, this world, this village, this particular body.

David Abram, author of "The Spell of the Sensuous", will be coming to Windgrove in March to lead a workshop over (ironically) the Easter weekend (another pagan holiday). Yesterday, in an email to David discussing the upcoming event, I described the type of person I wanted to invite: "I, myself, am not interested in inviting people out here to just sit around, talk the good talk, have a nice time and then head back to Hobart only to resume lives governed by mortgages and lacking in courage. The people I am interested in inviting are those who know it is not enough to just go to a peace or forest rally one weekend a year. I want to invite those who are already active in the healing of this earth; who are more interested in saving the Creation than themselves; who understand that gaining spiritual awareness involves getting bloodied." What really struck me was the strong emphasis I put on wanting those people "who are more interested in saving the Creation than themselves". I'm making a plea for the earth today. Personal salvation, personal growth, personal fulfilment means nothing if the earth gets destroyed in the process. Let us humble ourselves before the altar of this earth, join in the hallelujah chorus that sings its praises and go out and do the good work to bring peace on earth. Yes....."Peace on Earth, Goodwill towards All". It's written in the Bible.

A medical scientist recently gave credence to the notion that older people can be as smart and still capable of learning as those younger than them. He stated that even though an older person's brain loses millions of neurons through the ageing process, it more than makes up for this by using life's experiences to create synapses. In other words, it's all about networking.

For the last couple of months I have been slowly, ever so slowly, learning the very slow First Gymnopedie for piano by Erik Satie. On the cover of the edition I am using, there is Joan Miro's painting "Ciphers and Constellations in Love with a Woman". Looking at it this morning, it reminded me, not only of Orion, Cassiopeia, Ursa Major, etc., but also what the good doctor said about gaining connections as one got older. My fingers may be getting stiffer and unable to fluidly follow the dotted musical notes, but I think my imagination is finally beginning to loosen up and is getting good at connecting up the many dots in life found here, there and everywhere.

And, this afternoon, a confirmation of sorts came in the form of a natural Miro when a heavy gust of wind blew down onto the picnic table countless thousands of filaments from the blossoming silver peppermint eucalyptus trees. Are you old enough to see the connection?