I am absurdly passionate about all things simple and mundane. I am passionate about sheets dried on the clothesline and how babies smell. I am passionate about properly tied ties, how a shirt is ironed and mens’ shoes. I am passionate about freshly baked bread and homemade jam. People confuse this with being opinionated. I know I was once “opinionated” but that mellowed. I learned….tolerance? In that development, I learned to appreciate things without having to possess them or dismantle them. I also learned to allow others’ their preferences.
On this Easter Sunday, I think of how we chose to live our lives. Do we live an authentic life? Are we true? Tonight, Navy Seals rescued Capt. Richard Phillips of the Maersk Alabama, off the cost of Kenya. I suspect that captain and every man that made it off that pirated ship will have an intense passion for their life. A cold bottle of beer will look like a Rembrandt, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, the voice of Billy Holiday or Jimi Hendrix. Life will have pizzazz. It will have intensity and meaning…even the most mundane and simple of life’s endeavors will be profound. The softness a blanket, the heat of fresh cracked pepper, the speed of driving on the expressway will all feel significant. Just to be alive will feel like an amazing gift. And it IS an amazing gift. Unfortunately, most days, we are mired in the ridiculous stupidity of the everyday. We are annoyed at the bonehead in traffic next to us driving and texting with their “Baby On Board” sticker. We get agitated with the bag boy packing our groceries wrong and smashing our bread or bruising our apples.
Life is glorius and stunning. Beauty lies in the most simple things: perfectly melted cheese on pizza, the way your child’s hair feels between your fingers, the feel of a pile of fresh-out-of-the-dryer laundry poured on you while you sit on the sofa. It is luscious to get lost in these spaces. It makes for an intense and passionate life. Let nothing slip by. Let nothing go unfelt. Fear cannot be avoided or conquered, but it can be managed. And fear can help us focus. It makes us appreciate everything….RIGHT NOW. Tomorrow is a promise. Today is the gift. Today is the present. Be present. Have a presence.
My own favorite mundane things: silk robes and the oak tree canopy around my house. Seeing granddaughter’s face at the window when she sees me at the door. Not living in the present means not ever having a life.
oh and your emails are bouncing back. email me so i can’t send you the poem I told you about. xxj