NANOWRIMO and MARRIAGE
 |
It has been a good long while since I posted to this blog (or anywhere else). My job as principal and mom swallowed me whole and was threatening to digest me. However, I have been spit back out into the land of the living crazy people and have found a sense of self again. Prepare for yet more transitions. I have retooled my typepad accounts and may transfer this blog to that account, but I just can’t decide. In the meantime here is a random magic update:
NANOWRIMO:
I am participating for the first time in NANOWRIMO (National Novel Writing Month) and I have to say it has jump started my writing. Prior to the decision on Oct. 31st that I should and could do it, I hadn’t written a creative word on or offline in over 6 months! The magical act of signing up for this month of trying to make word count everyday has jumpstarted my right brain (ahh, finally). I feel like someone needed to hand-crank my engine to get me going. Perhaps it was the spider bite on my a*s…yes, that’s right. But Thanks to this random bit of magic (signing up for nanowrimo)…I feel rejuvenated mentally even though I am having to make word count in snatches of time at 4:30 in the morning, 15 minute lunch breaks at work, and after the kids are asleep at night.
And secondly, it is magical when you spy your six year old sitting next to a girl of his age (knees almost touching) as the program’s teacher comes to you to let you know that he said he loved the girl and was going to marry her because she shared a sandwich with him. 
Maybe not so random…but no matter– magic is magic. Later, on our drive home he said he had “fallen in love” with this fairy of a girl because she “plays with me”. Well, a good marriage usually begins with friends and those of like minds. So, he is off to a good start.
Summer Magic: Books are Medicine
Even though we couldn’t travel anywhere this summer, we did manage to have a lot of great ‘day-cations’ to various places around the southland. I think we went more places as a family this summer than any other one prior to it, but we just didn’t stay long and we had repeat trips to some places. It is nice to be able to get away even in your own region. I have a lot of favorites, but I think my most favorite day-cation is the one closest to our house. It is when we spent an afternoon at the Huntington (we live 2 miles away!). I cannot tell you what a relaxed thrill I get seeing my boys run through the grass without a care in the world! I also love seeing the butterflies, dragonflies, and hummingbirds alighting all the lush vegetation there. So magical…which leads me to the reason for the post: summer magic.
The day-cations were certainly magical and most unforgettable. There is nothing like a 5 year old belting the songs of a summer movie musical (even if it was last year’s summer movie) to lighten your load and make you realize why life is to be lived! However, I must admit that, for me, reading books in the summer is the most magical and rejuvenating thing I do all year. I don’t know what it is about ’summer’ reading — but it is different. I read everyday of the year, but for some reason what I read in the summer usually stays with me. This summer is no different. In fact it stands out as a recent example of books choosing me and not the other way around. This post is not going to turn into a review, but I will briefly say a couple of things for those who like books.
Books are medicine. I know this, and have always known this. However, I am almost finished with my last read of the summer (The Hummingbird’s Daughter by Urrea) and I skipped to the book club pages at the end and read part of an interview with the author in which he says that he didn’t think his little book was going to make a difference and some old curandera told him not to be silly: books are medicine! Of course! That is why I read– to mend what ails me. I choose books (or they choose me) like I am choosing herbs at an apothecary.
Here is the pile of books I read from June-present moment (and my ranking out of five):
My Wicked Marquess by Galen Foley ***
The Moveable Feast by Hemingway **** (can’t escape the melancholy in this one)
The Hummingbird’s Daughter by Urrea ***** (in my pantheon of all-time favorite novels)
Lord of Ice by Foley ****
The Power of Light/Dragonfly Sign
I read on another’s blog a while back that there is a belief that the first animal/insect/bird (etc) that one sees on the first day of the new year is an indication of the kind of year it will be. In another place I have read that if you are encountering an animal/insect/bird a lot it potentially has a message for you. Attention should be paid to its behavior and/or life cycle to unravel the message.
I do believe this to some extent, and play around with this idea when it hits me in the face. If nothing else the notion serves as an excellent meditation point (especially when all else fails in a hard day). So in the last 24 hours, I have run into (or more accurately, have been run into by) dragonflies. Skeptics (what would life be like without them?) will say it is dragonfly season or something of the sort, but most people would agree that dragonflies don’t usually dive bomb into your car on one day and then zoom by your hair the next. The third occasion of dragonfly sighting was more appropriate to how one normally experiences the dragonfly: flitting about a lotus pond at the Gamble House.
There are books that speak to animal totems and there are decks of cards that help you choose and understand messages from the natural world. I will pull out those cards this weekend. But for now, the book is easier to grab. Try this if you are interested in learning a bit about what animals/insects/birds can teach you: ANIMAL-SPEAK: THE SPIRITUAL AND MAGICAL POWERS OF CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL by Ted Andrews.
The skinny for tonight is that dragonflies represent the “power of light”. Their bright, jewel-like colors take time to develop and from that you may derive the meaning that with maturity your own true colors will emerge. And that little snippet of interpretation is enough to stop me in my tracks. For that is what I have been reflecting on and hoping for all this week.
So not random, but most magical I think.
Enjoy the evening folks!
Unknown cards
One silly system that I have had for a long time and even used in the classroom for writing prompts isn’t a divination system, but a collection of oval shaped mini-cards. Each card descibes “you”. So really it is more like a self-help tool. I have no idea what these cards are called; I got them too many years ago and then I realized that they were best used in creative writing prompts (when stuck).
Here was tonight’s pick:
“You are lost jewels buried in a seaweed forest.”
hmmm. I would like to think the above is true. I have simply had one of the toughest weeks in my job ever…but it doesn’t help that this is really just my first year with the ‘end of the year’ stuff because I was out on maternity leave last year. So I stuck my hand in this tonight and this is what I pulled. S
Strangely, it has made me feel better. The idea is magical, but really there was no true magic here. Or I am just being cynical. On the other hand, we did get some very fortuitous news today– so there is some magic wandering around here these days. Magnetic thinking– try it– it works!
Game Winning Shots? Random or Magical?
So, most of the known world probably saw Lebron James’ game winning shot last night. It was the magical moment that won them the game against Orlando and saved them from a loss. But it wasn’t random. It was a set shot (meaning it was the play they planned to make with one second left) and so nothing about it was random–except whether or not Lebron would have been able to step into position and take the shot in time. Lots of pressure there. No doubt.
I am not going to knock it or him. That was truly impressive, but I prefer the truly random magic of an unplanned clutch shot a la Robert Horry in the series that made him a legend against the Kings…see clip above. Perhaps I miss the Lakers of old (though old guard folks will say that I didn’t know the true Lakers of old)…however, this is the true random magic. Unplanned preparation meeting opportunity at the precise moment. Random. Magic unfolds.
Correct me.
And for those who prefer my card readings…they will come back but probably not until after my heavy season at work (June 10th-ish)…
Enough Randomness for One Day!
Had to do Jury Duty today. [eek!] Let’s just say that means I don’t have the energy to do a daily draw or pull from one of my systems. However, these days, there is a lot of randomness in jury duty. It is NOT magical (in my interpretation)…who is to say that it couldn’t be to someone though?
In any case, I was excused in a (not so) random moment and am finished for 12 months (woo-hoo!). However, coincidentally, someone I knew was on JD at the same time. And he began talking to me about a case he works on that (coincidentally) is actually about how random (or not) a machine is…ah, more randomness. It is everyhwere!
But this is about Random Magic…and I just don’t have anything magic for today– except the magic of the kismet that actually is being excused from service after a long, no a/c day in the courthouse!
Childhood Magic
It is National Poetry month for crying out loud. So I decided last night that I would select poetry for my son’s bedtime story. I let him flip randomly to the page (Rhapsodomancy) of the poem we would read. Kismet! There it is. All the magic one needs in a moment is a child’s hand and a poetry anthology. Magic is what we make it. But for me, magic is keeping the child alive inside us (no, I am not being trite or cliche here)…can you keep your openness? Can you nurture curiosity and hope even in the economic crisis or when bills are piled so high you can’t see straight? Yes, we can. Our youth rides in us forever.
Here is the magic he dug up for the evening– make of it what you will:
From ROSE, WHERE DID YOU GET THAT RED? by Kenneth Koch
Poem– [untitled, from children at St. Mary's Seminary in Swaziland] p. 296-298
I wish I had a big white bird which would fly up into
heaven and come back with good colored feathers
used by Angels of God.
I wish I had a pink monkey with eight tires and not legs.
I wish I will be a bed covered with brown paper like
a chimpanzee that drinks cocoa every day and
plays football every Friday.
[poem truncated for space]
The Way
I randomly flipped to a page yesterday morning to see what little tidbit I could reflect upon in my favorite Taoist book called EVERYDAY TAO, by Deng Ming-Dao. It was awesome, and applied instantaneously to my life. That is the beauty of random magic and why I decided to make a blog with this theme. Others might call it synchronicity.
The page/meditation was about finding your personal power and using it responsibly. The last paragraph is the best part and what really made me stop to think and feel the magic wand over me. Paraphrasing: One needs to be like a tigress, both ferocious and nurturing to really follow the way and use personal power appropriately.
[instructions: when the link opens to the amazon reader, type "tiger" into the search field and click on the first link which refers to page 21 to read the entire entry OR fun for you: type in any word and see where it takes you in the book!]
My Medieval Name
Ok I saw that someone wanted to get to a medieval word generator and found this site, so I thought– cool, that’s random. Which is pretty neato because I have always been into medieval things– so much so that my undergrad degree is in medieval/renaissance studies (italian if you must know). However, I have a penchant for medieval Japan and just LOVE the Golden Age of Islam. But back to the medieval words…I found this quiz for medieval ‘names’:
Your medieval name is: Magdalen. Out of conformity and inducing sexual meaning, you’re seductive and passionate, silent until spoken to and only violet when provoked. Gorgeous and mysterious, you’ve got it all.
But then I found this generator that you click on the gender and it randomly gives you a name.
Here are my results:
Female: CLARITA DU SAUSSAI
Male: ODON CROMWELL [wow, isn't that a name for a tyrant?!]
cool now I am ready to do some RPGs…;-)
Astrology can be random too…
And you know what I mean because it is much harder to be on the mark with a daily/weekly forecast for the millions of people born within the month of a sun-sign. I am not a true follower of astrology but I do know that the moon and rising signs in combination with the sun-sign are a greater indicator of personality than the general horoscope– so there it is…more randomness. In terms of magic– it is like flipping on the radio and hearing the song that was on your mind or the one that just fits the moment.
And as for horoscopes, I prefer those at FREE WILL ASTROLOGY by Rob Brezsny (see below for his Aquarius horoscope).
Aquarius Horoscope for week of March 26, 2009
Nothing but great news for you as far as the eye can see, Aquarius. You’re much more likely than usual to win a contest and be told you’re hot and find loose money on the sidewalk. I bet you’ll also get an invitation that you never imagined possible and an offer to have a conversation with a person you admire. Nor would I be surprised if you finally garner a certain form of recognition you’ve been pining for, get a message that will change your life in a sweet way, and discover a brand new trick for experiencing pleasure. APRIL FOOL! I was exaggerating. Maybe one or two of those wonderful things will happen (at most, three), but not all of them. Don’t be greedy.
Was it magical for you?
