(The picture taken at the Brussels exhibition Beyond Klimt. One of the best the town has offered this year. I did not note down the author, so if you stumble upon the sculptor´s name, let me know.)
Everything is relative, anything goes…
And with that, everything is so confusing.
I am drawn to animals, but I feed our cat with the carcasses of the less lucky creatures that lived poorly and died cruelly. I know I could never hunt and kill my dinner, so the answer could be veganism, but what do vegans feed their cats and dogs?
The pavements in Ixelles are sprayed with vegan messages, I read them walking to work every morning: Not your mum, not your milk… It is a good marching tune: Not-your-mum-not-your-milk, but is it a road to lighter, more conscious humans, fewer or no animals in cages, more singing birds and plenty of wildlife? I secretly hope it is, go to the office and shuffle through the endless e-admin. An admin-free world would be my ideal, but I understand and take the message: Learn to focus on what needs to be done. Once I let the repulsion dissolve, joy comes, office work gets smoother, not for too long, as the job is never done. Another form attached to an email, another document pops up.
Beginning of February, we went to the Brussels book fair with my writing friends. Two writers sitting on a stage, trying to put their minds into words, people passing, laughs and claps from other stages calling attention. One American, one Brit, similar generation, very different personalities, I see them distracted by all the buzz around. After a few moments, I move on, too, I revert from the books and eat a slice of pizza in the bar, more out of the need to do something concrete and simple than out of hunger.
In all the maze of this life, perhaps the most important skill is to learn to focus. Clear the mind, forget selection and place the choice. It is my free will and choice to do the admin with the concentration it requires, it heals the rebel in me that used to ignore it.
The greatest choice and compass, though, is bonding. In the presence of a few very close ones I am slowly allowing the timid and wounded inner child to come to the open. The little girl is squinting into the bright light and tends to run away to the shady corner. Never mind, there she is smiling shyly. Letting the child out is not risky, but better to be practiced with trusted individuals. Once the practice is established, the walking, talking and even the admin gets lighter, funnier, less tiring.
Energy flows, and that is the real miracle.
Yoga classes these days are filled with space: granting space to everything: cells, emotions, smiles, clumsiness, seasons´ changing.
Warriors. An Eagle Pose.
Allow and welcome.
