Hula Hooping

This weekend I got to try my buddy's hula hoop. It wasn't like the ones I played with when I was little. This one was much larger in diameter and weighted instead of being a hollow tube of plastic. It had a satisfying heft that counterintuitively made it easier to keep it going than the lightweight kind. I gave it a whirl and found I was better than I remembered. Then I kept going, and when I stopped I was out of breath with a huge smile on my face. My joy came not from pretending to be a kid again, but from falling into the moment and not thinking of anything but the gyrating hoop around my waist--spinning meditation. That and the endorphin rush of shaking all around!

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Little Kids (Hunting Easter Eggs)

More from the Easter chronicles with the LDF-family.  Here's an overly hasty scribble depicting cute little kids on an Easter egg hunt.  We saw this one little girl who was almost lost in her voluminously fluffy pink dress, sitting in the grass, not quite sure what all the fuss was about.  A slightly older girl approached her, holding out an egg and communicating via the special means that babies have to talk to each other.  Finally she flopped down on the grass almost atop the pink dress girl and everyone happily snapped photos.  I love the way little kids will just do their own thing, regardless of what the grown-ups are encouraging.  "Go!  Get those eggs!  You can do it!  Go fast!" shout the parents, and the kids amiably toddle along, enjoying the cool grass between their toes, observing insects in flight and the angle of the sunlight through the trees.  They may find Easter eggs and they may not, and they couldn't care a whit either way, except that the world is a big, bright, beautiful place full of endless wonder, and they're happy to be in it.  I'm with the kids.

Really Good Food

Good food is special.  Maybe there are places where all food is good food--nourishing and satisfying and prepared with care and attention--but I expect they're few and far between.  Here in the U.S. all too few of our meals fit into this category.  We're always on the go, always trying to save a few minutes here and there so we can cram more into our days.  But in so doing, we end up feeding ourselves poorly.  We consume processed foods that are quick to eat and that fill our stomachs, but that fail to deliver balanced nutrition or satisfy our senses.  We almost forget what a really good meal tastes like, what it feels like.  But when we do eat one, the difference is stark.  The flavors jump out with clarity and simple potency.  The multiple facets of our hunger, physical and mental, are satisfied, filled, relieved.  Our bodies feel energized rather than bloated, light rather than sluggish, alert rather than lethargic.  I had a really good meal tonight when the place where I work held a benefit dinner.  A barbeque pit master from South Carolina prepared a whole pig, cooking it all day long until the meat was extremely tender and juicy yet not greasy or heavy.  Local chefs prepared sides: pinto beans, cornbread, collard greens, pickled vegetables, and coleslaw, each traditional yet vibrant and with a fresh twist.  There was rich yet fluffy pound cake, the best banana pudding I have ever tasted, peanut bar cookies, and multiple kinds of wine and beer.  It was a really good meal not because of the selection of dishes, but because of the quality of the ingredients, the imagination with which they were combined, and the care with which they were prepared.  After eating I felt sated in all regards, not just full in stomach, but full of life.

Schmoozing

When I was a kid, I was really shy.  Painfully shy at times.  I'm not sure what happened between then and now, but somewhere along the line I found I really enjoy schmoozing with people.  I love hearing their names and learning about who they are and what they do.  I was an alumnus representative at an event my college held tonight for interested/admitted students from the area, and I had a blast talking with the students and their parents.  It wasn't just schmoozing for the sake of schmoozing--I think people are endlessly fascinating, and it's useful and gratifying to learn their unique stories.  Everyone tells her or his story differently, so even if the basic arc is one I have heard many times before, I learn something new with each telling.  At the best of times, my interest in the person I'm talking to completely overtakes any concern for how she or he is perceiving me, and I'm able to relax into the interaction and the communication.  As far as I can see it, that's where the divine dwells, in moments of pure curiosity and exchange, unimpeded by ego.  Of course, they're brief, and my ego gets in the way all the time, but every so often I'll come close to that divine spark, and it leaves me feeling energized and hopeful and full of joy.

DVD Box Sets

Maybe what I really mean to say here is TV series on some kind of media that let you watch as many episodes as you want at one sitting.  For so many of us, it's a slightly guilty pleasure to curl up on the couch with some hot tea or a beer and dive into the other worlds that flicker and glow on the TV screen.  Movies are fun, but TV shows that are really good can be so much more satisfying--it's like comparing a short story to an epic novel: both have their merits, but when you want to be absorbed for a long time, you go with the novel.  The characters have plenty of room to breathe and grow and change, to make mistakes and redeem themselves, to mourn to struggle and to celebrate.  There are wrenching moments and cathartic ones.  In the best cases, TV series can inspire self-reflection and even growth.  Some I have held dear over the years (some for many seasons and others for just a few episodes--and they haven't all inspired deep thoughts) have been Doctor Who, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Dawson's Creek, M*A*S*H, A Different World, ER, Early Edition, Ugly Betty, Battlestar Galactica, Firefly, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, Batman the Animated Series, and recently the original British version of Skins.  And probably a fair few that are slipping my mind right now.  I love the moment when I hear the first familiar strains of the theme music and the title credits begin to roll.  I lean back, get comfortable, and get ready to be transported.

Leaving Work Early

I enjoy my job overall.  Nevertheless, the opportunity to leave early on occasion fills me with a giddy joy that is probably disproportionate to the free time I've gained.  I guess it feels like I'm getting away with something, walking out the door into the sunlight and fresh air while my coworkers are still hunched at their desks.  Getting out of work even a couple of hours early makes me supremely happy.  I always have big plans for the time I've gained, but invariably spend it doing things of little consequence.  No matter.  It's still a lovely bonus.  I don't know if I would enjoy leaving work early if it were the way things worked normally, but I think we as a country would be much happier if our work days ended around 3 p.m.