Relationships & Spirituality

I find myself unable to sleep at 3 in the morning, an as this seems to be the topic floating around in my head I figure I will share it with the rest of you.

*Sidenote – not being able to sleep feels strangely like being held captive against my will.

What does spirituality mean in the context of relationships these days? I’m sure as many of you answer there will be unique responses. Some place a similar spiritual attitude at the forefront of their ‘wish list’ in a partner; for others it is an afterthought, maybe just a bonus for their counterpart to have a reverence for these things.

What does it mean to you in this context, and has it actually affected who you chose or desired to be with? Would you involve yourself someone that didn’t necessarily see eye to eye with you spiritually?

Given your background or upbringing, you (and me actually) can tend to associate (brace yourself for an air quote barrage) “being spiritual” with “going to church” or “being religious”.

There, you made it through.

If you take a step back and look at things from a wider perspective, I think you’ll find that even you don’t really believe that in this context.

Firstly, and I am not entirely sure that is a real word, you and I both can think of people who are very spiritual who have hardly set foot inside a church and rarely utter traditional prayers. I’m also confident that you’ve met others in your respective circles who attend the same services as you, but that you have felt little connection with. So what does it really mean?

I’m in danger of becoming long-winded so I’ll land with this; I think spiritual compatibility within the context of a relationship is paramount. Given my experience and thought process, this does include to a large measure some sort of theological agreement, but it goes deeper than just that. The very word ‘spirit’ denotes something soulful, the essence of ones being; it’s the stuff they are made of. It is more than personality, because one can be quiet and the other loud but both may be very passionate people indeed. Some Christians may call it being equally yoked, but whatever the wording, it may do you well to consider it more in the future.

As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts, and thanks for being an insomniac with me today.

Peace

Resonance

I’ve been talking about movies a lot lately but I’m not bothered by it if you aren’t. They often highlight things you wouldn’t normally notice in the everyday-ness of life.

Speaking of noticing things, when was the last time somebody noticed you? Not just looked at you or spoke to you necessarily, but actually saw through your mask to what was really going on underneath.

Have you seen the movie ‘Inception’ yet? First off, if you haven’t; what are you doing in your life? Your answer needs to be like,”tracking down rogue tigers in India” or “flying around the world in a balloon”. Anyway, it’s sort’ve like the scene where Leo (btw my sister and I are starting a protest group to get the man an Oscar) is at the bar with Cilian Murphy, and everyone in the lounge stops what they are doing and looks at him. Until he moves on in his speech the people fix their uncomfortable-ly static gaze in his direction, and as the audience you find that we were holding our collective breath during the whole scene.

That’s kind’ve what being noticed feels like. You feel exposed, found out, discovered. This, depending on your personality or circumstance or honestly your day can make it a wildly exhilarating, cripplingly horrific, or an amazingly defining moment. (‘Defining’ needed its own adjective)

No matter what you’re bringing to the table, I think we all desire to be known. It’s freeing, and really allows for relationships to grow. Think about the time someone asked why you looked so down even though you were trying to hide it, or instinctively knew you were going to find something hilarious without even having to make eye contact.

I don’t have a great way to end this post, outside saying the next time someone gets noticed, maybe it’ll be you pointing the proverbial non-threatening finger in their direction.

Peace

Can I just say how important 10 feet is?

10 feet is the blank de blank.

It’s the something if something.

It also the division between expression and creative stifletude, if I may make up such a word. How many blogs have I turned down posting because the ole acccc

Mornings Like This

Mornings like this one make me think of my childhood.

Pleasant sunshine.

The familiar owl making its final calls.

Birds cooing as they ready for the day.

A gentle wind blowing through the leaves bringing to life the nearby windchime.

On mornings like these I feel the need to take a moment and sit in silence, drinking it all in. It’s good to stop and think of the gift of life that we have. We aren’t guaranteed tomorrow, so make sure you carve out a few minutes today to appreciate the beauty that surrounds us.

Peace

Community (Not the show)

I watched Waking Ned Devine for the first time tonight and aside from the warm feelings I got towards the end (and the fact that all the words in my head now have an Irish tinge to them), it got me wondering about people and cultures, but more so community.

Growing up in various parts of the United States I’ve been exposed to different races, thought processes, food, weather, and landscapes.  Even in our technology-centered world you’d be surprised how much living either near mountains or flatlands can change your perspective on life.  In southern California it was the beach & sunshine, in Illinois the miserable cold, and in Georgia the humidity and pollen.  Yes, one of these is not like the other.

Waking Ned Devine focuses in on a small Irish community of 52 and how the lives of each member are affected by the man of the town who died upon realizing he’d won the lotto.  Their lives are so intertwined and rich with relational history it was impossible for the ticket to be claimed without someone being bothered to know who the winner was. It reminds me of my childhood a bit; growing up knowing nearly all of the families on my street and not feeling self conscious at all knocking on a neighbor’s door uninvited.  Fast forward to today where I don’t think I’ve been in the house of a single person on my street not counting the garage or halfway in the front door.  

I think  we all want community in some fashion; even that we were meant to have it.  Maybe it’s technology, or maybe it’s choice, but since everything is so accessible nowadays I think we look past what is right in front of us for the ‘better thing’ around the bend.  The thing is, we all have something unique that we bring to the table and we can certainly lose out by not appreciating what’s just next door.  

So, you all have an assignment this week: Learn something about a neighbor!  If you live in an apartment complex, choose someone on your floor.  If in a neighborhood, someone on your street.  Leave a message, knock on a door, share a drink; whatever you need to do to break the ice.  You might not meet your soulmate, but you might get a good friend out of it.

Have you ever had a positive experience with a neighbor?

I’d love to hear stories about how this goes for you guys.  Leave comments below!

Peace

Indie Movie Observations

A few thoughts on films, autonomous

+ The quiet is so palpable that when the film is done you can’t help but feel like you’re still in it

+ you feel the sun, rain, wind, and weather

+ they deal with the everyday issues we often don’t like talking about

+ you see something in the movie and think “wow that just described me”

+ (often) reminds that we all have flaws, but are worth fighting for nonetheless

When you’ve got a couple hours, check out ‘Beginners’ starring Ewan McGregor, Mélanie Laurent, and Christopher Plummer. Done very well!

Peace

Dreams

What do you dream about?

I won’t limit you to the dream box. Oh, you didn’t know there was a dream box? You can make out a box around anything really. Any idea, relationship, or circumstance will do. A dream box in this context would be ‘the stuff that goes on between closing you closing your eyes in bed and you opening them in the morning’.

But today let’s expand our four walls. This could be that thing that keeps you up at night, or the idea you just have to share with your friend, or maybe it’s the one you couldn’t possibly share. Dreams often reflect our cares, but sometimes when we consider them they are the catalyst that drives us onward.

If you’ve read this far; fantastic. It means you’ve expanded your definition of what a dream is and what it can do. Or that you already thought the same thing. Or that you just woke up from a crazy dream and this was the first thing that appeared, compliments of google. Whatever the reason, I’m elated that you’re still here.

Now remember that box I had you flatten? Let’s go back inside it and don’t forget your Inception goggles.

Are dreams art imitating life or life imitating art? They have the tendency to slip in (or out) of the small chink of armor that we put around put around our hearts and leave us feeling stirred, anxious, sad, or emboldened. And if we acted out of this post-dream stupor I’m sure we would have countless more applications submitted, roses delivered, plane tickets bought, and innovations developed.

What seems crazy at noon often looks perfectly lucid at 4am.

So here’s what you need ask yourself before the day closes:

• What do your dreams say about you?
• How do you remember the important ones?
• When was the last time you acted on them?

I’d love to hear about your experiences I’m the comments section! I may even share one of mine these days

Peace