You just have to do what makes you happy, and usually that is some sort of expression of yourself. We get so caught up in the status quo of fake expression, in what others think we ought to do or in what is prescribed to us by society’s ever-watchful eye. But if we just turn off all the noise--turn off the TV, turn off the internet, turn off the phone, turn off the iPod--we’re left with just silence.
Breathing in and breathing out. Can you hear yourself breathe in the
silence? The breath is thunderous. Eyes dart around quickly, looking for . . .
something, looking for something.
Anything. Anything at all. What is this thing called “silence”? There’s nothing whatever to do. No distractions, no pleasant pastimes. Just silence.
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| Unscripted. |
Ah, but the things that come out of the silence. Did you ever notice? It’s all creativity--always. And purpose.
And goals. That’s what the
silence brings. It brings
self-expression, self-awareness. It
brings a do-it-yourself craft, a clean kitchen, a freshly baked pie, an
organized list, a plan of action, a kiss from Nature . . . The silence always gives birth. It’s where everything comes from. Everything.
Which is why every effort is made to be certain that you
never go into the silence, to be certain that you never ask the real questions, to be certain that you
never find yourself. Because the moment
you do, everything will change. The
moment you do, the thin mirage will come crashing down and smash to
smithereens.
And then you’ll be alone--scared, empty, and alone. But not for long. Now that the mirage has fallen, true vision
is at last obtained. We take our empty
canvas, vast and wondrous, and we begin to paint our lives. Don’t be afraid! There is no one to judge your skills, and there
is every reason to believe that you might be wonderful after all, just the way
you are.
A little path of stones flanked with marigolds and small
flags leads the way to a small lighthouse replica sitting in a sea of green grass,
which “grows all around, all around.” A
tulip flag and lobster traps, gull decoys and a pail, buoys and a lobster, a sun
symbol and an old stone wall make up the paint on an even older canvas left out
back behind the shed. Who’s to say
whether it’s beautiful or not?
We may rightly say it is unsophisticated, but how marvelous,
that.
