There must be dozens like it on that mile swath of pale sand, but my gaze lands on this one and it sings to me.
A slender silvered branch polished smooth by its tidal ride, it’s about four feet long, though it would measure much longer if it could be straightened. But that’s the point. My sinuous stick got this way by adapting to its environment. Each curve of its growth is a reaction to sun or wind or impediment. It survived, for a time at least, by being flexible, and even in death, it still is.
That’s what I love about it—its almost toy-like bendability. As I hold one end and move it, it sways from side to side like a needle on a speedometer tracking from 0 to 60 and back at lightning pace. It could almost be called rubbery, yet it has retained the dignity of aged wood, and at rest, the hard density.
The trajectory of its growth is erratic. At first subtle, it even grew straight for a brief time. In fact, the first half of this narrow branch’s life was unremarkable, but then things got interesting. It began to veer off on a wider arc then kinked back and forth, reacting quickly to dramatically shifting conditions. The result is a linear sculpture of delightful beauty. Lying on the sand, it mimics the course of a river in an aerial photo.
But I choose to return it to the soil, to plant it upright in the earth outside my window where it encourages me to be more flexible—to weigh other viewpoints a bit longer, to soften my own entrenched positions. It urges me to seek playfulness, to avoid stodginess. To remind me of that, I poked its pointy tip through the hole of a limpet shell from the same beach, so now it wears a jaunty conical hat. My curvaceous stick also speaks to me about styles of reasoning; maybe the path to my answer is circuitous. Perhaps the best route between two points is not the shortest.
Or more simply—twisted can be good.
CONTEMPLATIONS
• Is there some area of your life calling out for a more flexible attitude?
• Have you enjoyed plenty of playfulness lately?
• Could you be more adaptive to the curves in your path?
• Is there some twisted aspect to your life that deserves celebration?
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May 14th, 2009 at 12:39 am
What a beautiful piece of writing and such wise observations.
I think that we humans tend to think that if the path isn’t straight then it is the wrong path, it is in adapting to ‘what is’ as your stick has done that growth and flexibility can go hand in hand.
Our twists and turns are what makes us different, unique, there are very few straight sticks unless they have been ‘trained’ to grow in a uniform manner.
I have found that my growth has been in spirals, I keep arriving back at the same place but from an elevated view on the upward spiral everything has changed.
I love your writing. x
May 14th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
Hi Joy, Thanks for your comment. This can be a tough lesson, can’t it? Especially for those of us who are by nature inclined to impatience. The fast pace of 21st century life adds to the impression that everything ought to happen in an instant, that paths should be short and efficiently designed–i.e. straight and to the point. Meandering may be a lost art. Now I look for things that deviate from what’s expected. It’s always more fun. ~Oriana
May 20th, 2009 at 8:11 am
To me it’s the mindful meandering that’s the best part, closest to my true nature…it’s all of the conflicting energies out in the world that pull me off course…perhaps I need more flexiblity and adaptability to the outside world…but it always feels when I try to do that, I find myself farther and farther from my path and my true nature, and not feeling or doing very well…just drained…
Seems other people are trying to find that peaceful place inside themselves and in all of Divine Creation, and I don’t want to leave that place of peace and the divine that is so natural for me, leaving that place seems to cause me so much damage.
Thanks, Oriana for your insight. I don’t know how I will finally merge the inside with the outside, the spiritual with the worldly, but your art/writing always gives me perspective, and takes me to a place of peace.
Becky
May 20th, 2009 at 8:27 am
Great comment Becky…I can relate to your conflict. Perhaps your solution, like mine, is to stop trying so hard to live in the outer world and find ways to spend more time living in the inner world. I am no longer able to be around people for very long–especially in large numbers. I’m not agoraphobic, I just prefer the company of plover and foxes and even the deer who munch my garden. Being a hermit is a very rich life for me, but I realize it’s a path few others can walk. Of course, it’s the Internet that allows me the ability to live and work in a remote location–so thanks, Al, for inventing it!
~Oriana
May 20th, 2009 at 8:46 am
Exactly, I live that same way (except I just have a tiny spot with a crazy city around me) and completely understand it…it works for me, too…the only problem I find is that I have to make a living, somehow that requires me outside interaction. I even find that being on the internet I absorb too much of the conflicting energies of all of the interactions…I thought it would be an answer for me,too, perhaps I need a different approach to how I use the internet…I am working on that…
I hope I have not brought negative energy to you! I thank you for your input, I could see that our true natures were similar, you are living more in line with it, what I’m aiming for, and I have some obstacles right now that I need to move out of my way so I can, too!
Thanks, Oriana!
Blessings,
Becky