Tagged: writer

Poetry – Walls.

Walls; we’ve all got them, right?  I’m not talking about the kind of walls that we hang our pictures on, but the ones that we create for ourselves.  Our mental barriers that, oddly enough, can often be stronger than the ones that line our humble abodes.  For many reasons, we construct walls to keep stuff in, or to keep stuff out.  Some are based on past experiences, while many are raised by fears.  Either way, they’re ultimately a hindrance; they prevent a freedom of true expression.  We will atrophy behind them, thinking that we’re protected, until we earn our release.  Let’s get out of there, right?  Think about it.  Best of days to all, and thanks for reading!

Poems – Natural Strength.

Earth…what a beautiful creation.  It has lived and breathed for eons, despite the often destructive eccentricities of humankind.  Earth embodies a strength that is hard to quantify, but is easily felt.  I think that, in today’s technologically advanced world, it’s all too easy to remain cooped up and locked behind walls, both literally and figuratively.  Let’s open the doors, get out, and soak up as much of that natural strength as we can.  Peace and blessings to all.

Poems – Once More Unto the Breach.

Today’s positive message; keep on trying.   Are you working on something, but have lost the mojo to continue?  Keep on trying.  Stuck in a rut like quicksand and can’t pull out of it?  Keep on trying.  Wanting to turn around and give up the fight?  C’mon…keep on trying.  Smile.  Take a glance at the poem below if you wish (and have a minute or five); good day/evening to you all, and thanks for dropping by.

Poems – Sketches of Possibility.

Thoughts are fun…writing is, too.  The two go very well together.  On occasion, I like to remind myself to slow down, think, relax, and take in the moments.  Sort of a mindfulness approach, but mostly just my way of remembering to be appreciative.  It’s so easy to complain in this world. Thinking and writing clean the slate and clear the head….and enable us to realize how green our own pastures are.

Peace and happiest of days to all!

Storytime Saturday, featuring an excerpt from A Million Little Boxes – a work story. 

I decided that I’d refuse to let a building define me. I’d refuse to allow any company, or entity, or job, or anything define who I was as a person. As a human. As a man. The contents of that building did not define my success. My success was not in there. It’s in here. It’s within my chest. Within this soul. I am defined by who I am, and what I do…what I believe and what I feel…what I’m capable of…not by the whim of some fucking corporation. Interestingly, it was brought to my attention that I may be afraid to move forward, that I feared success more than I feared failure. The thought of that shit had me up in arms, like “what?” You’ve got to be kidding me, right? “All I want is success”, I’d tell myself.  But you know what?  Maybe I was.  

Poems – Following Daydreams.

If you’ve visited this space before, you by now may be fully aware of the fact that I love to dream.  If you’re new to this space, welcome aboard!  Hey, I’ll admit it…I am a professional dreamer.  I love a good daydream.  Who doesn’t, right?  I have an incredibly vivid imagination, and putting that imagination to work is a fun challenge.  You know what I’ve noticed, though?  Dreams are nothing without action.  They are just (super excellent) thoughts trapped within our brain until we do something about it.  It really all comes down to one thing…how bad do you want said dream?  If it’s worth accomplishing, then it’s worth the effort.  Let’s keep on dreaming…but let’s not don’t forget to do.  Peace and love (and good daydreams) to you all. 

Theatrical Thursday – Big (1988).

The year was 1988. I’d spent countless hours begging my mother incessantly in that desperate, nine year old beggary voice…begging for the chance to see Big in the theaters. I went so far as to cut the picture of it from the film section of the newspaper (it was a big, goofy picture of Tom Hank’s face), and I’d carry it around and show her with the hope of annoying her into taking me to see it. When she finally did, I loved it then and for many years to come. I’ve seen the film about 786 times to date, but seeing it again recently after a very long while opened my eyes to a few key elements that a nine year olds eyes will never see. The main character, Josh Baskin, wished “to be big”; he got his wish, and woke up one morning looking like grown up Tom Hanks. Most of the movie involved Tom acting like he was twelve, but what I hadn’t noticed before was the emphasis on choices. I had no idea that the movie was so complex; taken apart, it had some very deep inner workings.

As an adult, the kid found great success working at MacMillan Toys, great love with Susan (the love interest), and a maturity that most twelve year olds don’t possess. He also earned a pretty powerful conundrum that most kids don’t have to endure; having to choose between prematurely continuing a successful adult life, or reverting back to the comforting reality of his youth. In my opinion, the most powerful scene in the film was when he went back home, in adult form, and witnessed firsthand what he had, and ultimately would, miss out on if he chose the adult path. The ‘innocence’ of youth; friends, games, and family stared him in the face, and either decision that he made was bound to hurt someone. It showed that life revolves around choices, great or minor, and how ultimately, you have to make the decision that’s best for you.

He followed his heart and went back to his family and his young self in the end, but his decision to do so was embedded in my head for a few days after I’d watched the movie. So many of us in life, when confronted with great decisions, freeze up from indecision, and rather than formulate a well-calculated battle plan, we end up making none and float through life under the mercy of fate. It takes incredible character to exert the power of choice, despite the odds. Hey, if the kid in the film was able to make a sound decision that would affect the lives of everyone around him, then we should all be able to, right? Twenty-eight years after seeing Big, I finally got a sense of the soul of the movie; follow your heart, and you can’t go wrong. It’s never too late to learn that message.