In Between

I am pausing before taking on a new topic here.  In part, this is because I am waiting to see what stories and pathways wish to manifest here,  now that our other journey is completed.  But also, there are some major shifts happening in my work and practice, which I am sure will be reflected here over time.

So for now, I will share a few random tidbits from past years. If you’ve been here a long time and remember reading them, please forgive the repetitions. But then again, perhaps there will be fresh illumination in them for you. This is from February, 2006 and it echoes some of the themes we had discussed in The Artist’s Way.  Enjoy.

The opposite of war is not peace, it’s creation.
— Jonathan Larson, playwright

Creation is a passion, like falling madly in love — falling in love with life itself. Creation is complex — a rush of emotion, inspiration, honed awareness and skill.

Combat is complex, too. In both, one is keenly, intensely alive.

The lead story in our local Raleigh newspaper today [2006] concerns the horrifying numbers of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans who are coming home, only to be killed in motorcycle accidents. Seems they are seeking that adrenaline rush they have become used to, after being in prolonged danger and guerrilla combat.

Too bad there isn’t a way to channel that urge to be hyper-alive towards a more life affirming goal, rather than self-destruction. Of course, this is incredibly oversimplified, for who can know the deep rage, guilt, and pain that warfare scars into the soul? Especially a war that, even among many of the most stalwart conservatives, raises questions and doubts as to its legitimacy.  [At least at that time it did].

But it seems to me that war is raging all around us – not just in Iraq, but in our own neighborhoods, who are at the mercy of the domestic warlords we call gangs. And it is spreading. What can be done? I know that economic justice is desperately needed.

But I also believe that people need to find their creativity. It is my observation that being deep in the power of creation is a very practical and realistic antidote to the need for risk, violence, and self-destruction. For connecting to creativity is, in fact, directly connecting to Creator.

The idea that giving people the opportunity to be creative is a luxury that should belong only to the elite is a reprehensible, dangerous act of societal self-sabotage. The notion that your own creativity is unimportant is not only wrong, but a contagious, destructive attitude that ultimately hurts everyone.

It is really very simple. By creating and supporting the infrastructures that promote and make possible individual creativity, we make the profound shift towards peace.

Creativity thwarted leads to violence.

Creativity honored and cultivated heals war.

We have a choice between the making and the unmaking of the world.