You might as well turn back now. This is one of those list/update posts. As in I’m not sure I have anything to say, but having spent a day in solitude with good music and good books, I feel compelled to say something.
Lately, I’ve been listening to a lot of songs from the band Soul Coughing. I like a lot of individual lines in their lyrics and the jazz/funk/rock mix of their music. The music dovetails well with some abstract/surreal poetry that I’ve been reading. The influence of the two have inspired me to write a few new poems – though abstract, in my writing, is never terribly abstract.
I finished reading all about love by bell hooks. It was good and also challenging. In many respects, it reaffirmed much of my thinking about compassion, community, love, and spirituality. Hooks, like so many other writers and thinkers, frequently talks about the challenges of maintaining an open heart and the importance of honesty (especially with the self), forgiveness, curiosity, and the desire to thrive in difficulty. I had underlined a lot of different passages and will need to re-read some of them. It was difficult to read the book and only focus on my self – without contemplating past relationships or how other people fit into this framework. I find that happens a lot when I read books like this… my first reading wants to use the book as a diagnostic tool and I have to fight that urge. I wanted to write about what I’ve read, but I need some time to digest.
Earlier today I re-read a post from three years ago, “Know Thyself.” It’s showing up in the “my back pages” section/widget of the blog. I had forgotten about the personality tests I had taken back then. In the three years since writing it, I suspect I’ve become even more aligned with the descriptions I had written about and quoted. I’ve spent these years focusing on peace and practicing seeing the best in others. With a few colleagues and friends, I’ve shared my borrowed philosophy of “smiling while cutting carrots” or learning to think pleasant thoughts in the most mundane tasks. While I still don’t fully buy into the analysis of the personality types (because what system is going to say… “this is the worst and most difficult of the personalities…”) re-reading that post brought a level of comfort in thinking that maybe I’ve been on a fruitful path of personal discovery/re-discovery. I genuinely want to bring a level of peace and inspiration to my friendships and relationships, and I’ve been learning that begins within.
Happy Sunday y’all.