Wednesday, December 28, 2005
ON CHRISTMAS GIFT GIVING
Of course the "joy of giving" is the mantra of the Christmas season but a flip side to it I'd failed to hit firmly upon before, is the joy of receiving - that the genuine appreciation of receiving something and the expression of that feeling, is comparable to a sort of gift in return. To have someone's well-meaninged thought, feeling, and action be proved to have been fruitful, by a conspicuous showing of happiness, or pleasure or satisfaction, surely adds to the initial glow of generosity which propelled the gift giver in the first place.
“Qui coupe son bois se chauffe deux fois” means essentially, "he who cuts his own wood gets warm twice" So too with sensitive, intelligent gift giving: He who shops wisely has his heart warmed twice. (French translation forthcoming)
Thanks
D
Saturday, December 17, 2005
LOVE AINT LOVE 'TIL YOU GIVE IT AWAY
Being in the spirit of the season I wanted to bring up something I hope helps people contribute to that spirit the whole year long.
No, not giving me meaningless presents all year. (The 365 days of Christmas??)
No, it's simpler than that - and way cheaper. That is, unless you're spiritually bankrupt.
One thing I see in a lot of people is that they just cant tell other people "You've done good, or nice job, or gee I really liked the way you: said, wrote, played, sang, danced, drew, whistled, chainsawed, explained", or whatever it is you did.
Now why the hell wouldnt you do that?? How can you hold back??
Well, in answer, I played in a band where the other guitar player, after we began playing out, never once made a single comment about anything I played. Now when I, on the other hand, heard something he played that sounded good, I let him know it. But his ego was so "fragile" that he couldnt afford to be generous in the least, lest his image of himself be compromised. After leaving the band, he admitted that he had never learned as much from anyone....
How small.
The way I see is that when you share a compliment (and I mean a heartfelt one) for a job well done, it's encouraging to the recipient, which to me, is akin to providing a little bit of spiritual nutrition - aka "love". To not do it deprives the individual who's not sharing an opportunity to enrich his or her own self, and specifically, ends the Christmas season abruptly.
So c'mon folks, let's keep the spark of joy alive all year - the return is immediate for all.
Merry Christmas
or all inclusive: Happy Kwanzhanakarhristmas!
PS - dont get me going on "holiday PC" - d'ja hear about the mall selling "holiday trees"??? Sheeeesh!
Sunday, December 11, 2005
ibid
"Sweet, the years before 1590, when one was loved because one simply was!"
Saturday, December 10, 2005
TITLE, CHAPTER, ENDING
sad how u so casually render meaningless all the efforts originated from love
Thursday, December 01, 2005
'VIBING'
I had the pleasure of going home and spending Thanksgiving with my family for the first time in over 10 years including my sister Brie who hadnt made it for, believe it or not, 30 YEARS!! Incredible that it had been that long. Plus Flip my cousin made it in from Europe, so the good times were rollin.
Seeing my older sister Leslie reminded me that when we were itty bitty tykes, we received little Steiff animals from my cool uncle Guy. Over time, with this collection of much cherished characters, (some of the crew who can be seen above) Les and I created a virtual community with many scenarios taking place over the hours and hours and years of our early childhood. It was a blest time. Les's main character was a rabbit named Nicky, which eventually became an appropriate name for my daughter, considering the love that had been shared w/the original Nicky. (Excruciatingly, Nicky the rabbit was lost outside one day never to be found. But miraculously, Santa managed to have "found" her, "cleaned her up" and delivered her back by the next Christmas morning - lol.) My little buddy/alter ego was a dog named Bazzy and now that I think about it, I dont seem to remember Les naming any of her daughters after him. I'm tellin Mom!
Anyway what's interesting is what it taught both Les and me, and that was to be supportive. In order to successfully enjoy yourselves for hours on end, one of the important abilities that must be crafted is the ability to allow the circumstance with which you are involved (as in the created scenarios) to evolve. That means that the communication that is being created is oriented to maintaining the evolution - that the sense of "play" must be maintained in order for the enjoyment to continue. Once that ends, when the "vibe" is broken, the magic is gone.
Now as an adult, in terms of playing music, the advantage of this experience is obvious. In team sports, again, obvious. Your ability to sublimate your ego and be pro-actively aware of your band/team mates equates with the essence of team. Once the ego is introduced, the team feel is, to create a new term, "T.O.'d" (as in Terrell Owens)
But the not so apparent need for this is in our relationships, and especially our developing relationships. It's been shown that one of the major ingredients of successful marriages is the ability to play, and without it, love becomes lifeless and drab.
So friends, I say, go out and play. And when someone starts to have fun with you, take that as an opportunity to extend your joy by contributing to the fun - PICK UP THE BALL AND RUN WITH IT - it makes you even more enjoyable to be around.
ps - I almost called Les before she came up for TurkeyTime from Alabama to suggest we both bring our animals to see if we still had the magic.
But i got too busy......
Now aint that booooorrring?!?!
