It Starts With A Bra

Sometimes it’s as simple as putting on a bra.

I know some of you never need to do that (and I envy that), but believe me, this body needs a bra. You’ll have a metaphorical equivalent.

And some days that bra is more than an over-the-shoulder-boulder-holder. Sometimes it is the caffeine in my cup, the gas in my tank, the match to my flame. It can be what turns this non-productive shitty feeling into “Hey! Why don’t I…..? Or, how about…..?” Fill in the blanks with what catches my fancy.

It is not hard for me to slop around all day in the same thing I slept in. After all, I often don’t have to actually leave the house: I found that onion I needed to make dinner. Borrowed it from my housemate actually. And nobody that I know of is coming through the door. And tonight, after watching “The Bachelor”, I can just go back to sleep in this same snazzy non-matching set of sweatpants and t shirt, topped by an ancient Roots fleece with a non-functional zipper. Replace “The Bachelor” with ‘Biggest Loser” tomorrow night and repeat indefinitely until..........

.

Which can mean that one day can flow into another without anything really happening.

Which I feel some shame about in this “I’m so busy!!! I have no time for me!!" world. Let's leave that neurosis for another day.

But. If I put on a bra…. Well! That changes the whole damn story! My back is straighter.  The girls are lifted. While I’m at it, I might as well put on a shirt I haven’t slept in, and pants I wouldn’t be embarrassed to greet someone at the door in. And I think I’ll brush my teeth, and wash my face, and well, one thing leads to another and before you know it, I’ve actually turned off the television and I’m finding satisfaction in doing the things I really did want to do. Like making a present for my friend Cath’s birthday.

And all it took was putting on a bra.

What’s your bra?

Ben Cameron: The true power of the performing arts | Video on TED.com

Ben Cameron: The true power of the performing arts Video on TED.com

There's truth here..... Get past the introduction and listen to what he has to say about the future of the performing arts. I would say that the power of any art is its social relevance.  I want to be stirred, shaken, moved and lifted by the art I encounter. I want it to matter, whether that is by making me laugh, think, or cry. It may make me angry or puzzled or draw me into that curious place of resonating mystery. I don't really care how good you are technically at drawing lines or balancing on your toes, if it doesn't come from a place of heart, it is probably not of interest to me. I need to know it matters to you. Then it will matter to me, regardless of whether I "like" it or think it is "good".

The arts, whatever they do, whenever they call us together, invite us to look at our fellow human being with generosity and curiosity.

Everything is insignificant....

which feels more than a tad depressing. And maybe that seems like a poor way to start a new venture.
But.
Here's the rest of the quote..
"Everything is insignificant, but it is important that you do it anyway."

Gandhi said that. Ghandi! Surely Gandhi can't be wrong.

I have a ton of "aha" thoughts go through my head each day, well some days anyways. Some of those thoughts seem rather insightful at the time. Some feel positively brilliant. They often come when I'm doing dishes or out in the garden. Why is it that they disappear when I sit down to write?

Because now I want it to be important, to be big, to invoke change in the world. I want it to matter. I want it to be good. And that puts pressure, and judgement and all of the things that block our creative impulses.

 So instead, let's go with the idea that this blog thing is insignificant. And if it is insignificant, then it doesn’t have to be good. It doesn’t have to matter. In fact, it can be shallow and shitty and puny.

There's freedom in that. And that is not depressing, but liberating indeed.
So I am hereby granted freedom to create insignificance.
But it is important that I do it anyway.