Dig-in to the Permanent & Release the Temporary

It was a beautiful day for a hike: mid-forties, partly sunny, a gentle breeze, and a leisurely, restful Sunday.  I left the house without a walking stick, not really focused on a direction, a style, or a plan.  I had no expectations, I just wanted to walk, Forrest Gump-style.

Almost immediately, nature provided a perfect walking stick.  I almost gave it a toss away from the path and into the woods, but there was something potential and maybe preemptively advantageous about keeping it.  So I adopted it and we went a walking.

  Get a load of those pink gloves.  So NOT ME!

My open mind at the outset of today’s walk served to unleash some stuff from within; deep within.  When I was a teenager, in the throes of developing what would become a deeply philosophical/spiritual soul, there was a saying: “If you love something set it free…if it was meant for you it will come back to you.”

I’m sort of in love with Autumn and with some reluctance, I’m having to release those beautiful but oh so temporary yellow, orange, red, and brown leaves to the wind in the hope and expectation of new ones arriving next year.  But at the same time, I marvel at the utter permanence of the boulders along my path, many of them moss strewn, which will remain the same from season to season and year to year.

The juxtaposition of temporary, fleeting, & releasing against permanent, solid, & grounded made life feel awesome for this moment in time.  Then, to conclude my walk, I felt my place in life when I came across a winding, curved, but solid and purposeful tree root and a mushroom/fungus, utterly attached to a tree root, looking so unmoved as to be a permanent part of that tree’s root system.

I find nature’s curves appealing.  I’m not one for linear thinking nor is my body unfamiliar with curves.  We’ve all heard of the curve-ball.  But many of us don’t expect to encounter them in our lives.  The wise among us have learned to accept the curves and even treasure the gifts they eventually bestow.

I finished my walk singing and walk/jogging, and I’ll finish these thoughts with, some lyrics from What a Feeling from Flashdance:

“First when there’s nothing   But a slow glowing dream   That your fear seems to hide   Deep inside your mind   All alone I have cried   Silent tears full of pride   In a world made of steel   Made of stone   Well, I hear the music   Close my eyes, feel the rhythm   Wrap around   Take a hold of my heart   What a feeling…  You can dance right through your life…”

 

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.