Michael Hill wrote this beautiful comment to the previous post on walking (juggling) in beauty, and I wanted it to be my first guest blog.
While I retired from the “hectic” life not yet five years ago, when I look back on it, it is but a tiny speck in the far-away distance of the past. Actually, I learned early on of the detriments of an over-busy life some years before I retired and moved to expand and enhance my already regular and varied times in beauty. I suppose growing up along the coast in California in the 50s and 60s did provide a pretty good setting for learning to appreciate the best in life.
During my fifty years of work life, I have always taken my vacations, planning for them well in advance so I always got the days off I wanted along with good seats on my flights and keys for the asked-for favorite accommodations. I learned early on the value of stepping out of life’s way to “restore rhythm and balance.” I appreciate reminders about the need to “take some time off” and the value of doing that. Throughout my workdays, I always knew that on the calendar there were days ahead that were highlighted to mean “v-a-c-a-t-i-o-n”.
Living in Santa Monica, California a mere six blocks from the beautiful blue Pacific, I always recognized that wide expanse where the sky met the sea at the horizon as an easily available refuge for my soul. It is filled with a great panoply of nature’s beauties – the crunchy dry sand and that moist, dig-your-toes in type at water’s edge; the waves at one time calm and in others a great maelstrom, and I would be seriously remiss to omit the beach sunsets. It was always a joy to see so many people come out and watch them; and to also notice that depending on the season, how the sun set over the mountains in winter, then to the last point of land in spring, then through the summer into the sea, and then in fall, head back north. And late afternoon fall light is heavenly as is watching the light break through the clouds after a winter’s storm or watching the rain over the ocean as it moves toward shore; beauty surrounded me and I knew it.
Now add to that setting the nearby Santa Monica Mountains with their miles of trails and spectacular views of that same Pacific Ocean; the walks through rolling hills amidst small fields of wild flowers in springtime, down creeky hollows to a clearing where one could sit and take it all in – and feel deep appreciation for it all – and experience a sense of being blessed. Access to beauty has always been close for me and I have regularly opened myself to it in my life.
Now I live on a nine-acre farm in the Coast Range of Oregon, off a gravel road a couple of miles outside a tiny town with a population of 164. I enjoy our hay pasture, our forest and our pond in addition to the orchard, berry patches, trellised grapes and raised beds filled with fresh, growing veggies.
However, having painted the picture of my idyllic life, I need to add that since I’m a “doer” and a “planner”, I have – in creating this small farm – burdened myself in those early years of retirement such that I actually did my body harm.
Moving away from a life behind a desk within minutes of a run on the beach or from catching a few waves to turning an abandoned cow pasture into a producing farm at age 68 might have been undertaken with a tad more pause, but no, I had not yet the awareness or experience of an aging body. I was still “young,” wasn’t I?
So, after experiencing the painful (and long-lasting) effects from the over-use of under-used muscles and tendons (not to mention an extraordinary amount of ibuprofen) I had to sit myself down and realize the status of my own body against the pageant of my vision of having things done in a ‘timely manner’ and accept that “timely” will take a little more time (maybe even a lot more time) than I had originally planned, and to stop more often during the day’s work to gaze around at the natural beauty that surrounds me and the abundant peace and quiet that envelops our emerging little farm and let my spirit breathe in that beauty and be renewed.
I wholeheartedly concur in the encouragement that we all experience and enjoy those times of ‘living at our best’ with greater frequency, depth and thanksgiving.
[I am posting this comment by Dr. Perry; it was intended to apply to the post on juggling, but since comments on that post are not available, I’m taking the opportunity of adding it here. Dr. Perry writes:]
I offer this from my experience.
In my professional career, vacations have been more than not combined with professional meetings. And these meeting cover the weekends, including Sunday. Though the meeting were usually over by lunch time, they sometimes extended into the afternoon and even into the evening. This was a very disagreeable situation in turns of trying to renew the mind and the spirit. So I have found these practices to be helpful.
Vacation should be for renewal and not work.
Leave some time just for resting, reflection, and enjoy doing nothing.
Return home and allow at least one day of rest before returning to work.
Avoid over extending yourself at work; while you can do several things as easy as you can do one; you can not do them at the same time. You may
switch back and forth but each function has to be done serially rather than in parallel. We can only do one thing at a time.
Comply with deadlines before the last minute; we never know what may happen at the last minute thus creating conflict.
Allow adequate time for sleeping and resting. Burning the candle at both ends is not a good practice.
Find something each day separate from work to look forward to.
Allow time to nourish and nurture relationships; cultivate comforting and inspiring relationships.
Maintain the proper balance between the values of family and work. Though sometimes difficult to do, a balance must be achieved.
Make sure that your intellect matches the work you are engaged. Too much intellect for a given job leads to boredom; too little intellect for a given job leads to frustration and failure.
Make sure you have a passion for your work. Zeal is in and of itself energy generating.
The desire for service should be the foundation for all that you do.
Leave time in each day for communing with God however you perceive him. This practice gives renewed energy for the service as well as for providing wisdom for the tasks. It also insures that your moral compass is pointed at the spiritual star.
Relate yourself to others in such a way that they receive the maximum benefits of your goodwill.
And while this does not remove all of the problems associated with working on the evolutionary world, it certainly helps.
Dr. Perry
I always hoped that this weblog would be a gathering place for participants’ experiences and wisdom about living.
[I am posting this comment by Dr. Perry; it was intended to apply to the post on juggling, but since comments on that post are not available, I’m taking the opportunity of adding it here. Dr. Perry writes:]
I offer this from my experience.
In my professional career, vacations have been more than not combined with professional meetings. And these meeting cover the weekends, including Sunday. Though the meeting were usually over by lunch time, they sometimes extended into the afternoon and even into the evening. This was a very disagreeable situation in turns of trying to renew the mind and the spirit. So I have found these practices to be helpful.
Vacation should be for renewal and not work.
Leave some time just for resting, reflection, and enjoy doing nothing.
Return home and allow at least one day of rest before returning to work.
Avoid over extending yourself at work; while you can do several things as easy as you can do one; you can not do them at the same time. You may
switch back and forth but each function has to be done serially rather than in parallel. We can only do one thing at a time.
Comply with deadlines before the last minute; we never know what may happen at the last minute thus creating conflict.
Allow adequate time for sleeping and resting. Burning the candle at both ends is not a good practice.
Find something each day separate from work to look forward to.
Allow time to nourish and nurture relationships; cultivate comforting and inspiring relationships.
Maintain the proper balance between the values of family and work. Though sometimes difficult to do, a balance must be achieved.
Make sure that your intellect matches the work you are engaged. Too much intellect for a given job leads to boredom; too little intellect for a given job leads to frustration and failure.
Make sure you have a passion for your work. Zeal is in and of itself energy generating.
The desire for service should be the foundation for all that you do.
Leave time in each day for communing with God however you perceive him. This practice gives renewed energy for the service as well as for providing wisdom for the tasks. It also insures that your moral compass is pointed at the spiritual star.
Relate yourself to others in such a way that they receive the maximum benefits of your goodwill.
And while this does not remove all of the problems associated with working on the evolutionary world, it certainly helps.
Dr. Perry
I always hoped that this weblog would be a gathering place for participants’ experiences and wisdom about living.
[From Michael Hanian on juggling:]
I accidentally found, then practiced, then mastered (smile) a technique based on a very simple thing: switching over. This diversion technique has proved to be so powerful that I have started to share this with others whenever I can. In a nutshell, it’s a practice of switching over to a different activity every time there is either a slightest sign of fatigue or any sort of hindrance. At such moment, I immediately switch to something else: read news headlines, step outside, make a call, reply an email, etc. In just a few minutes, I get back to whatever I was doing, and almost without exception, I feel energized and can move on with my projects.
Michael, wonderful. I’m beginning to work with your method. It is customary for people to take breaks, but rare to take one (when reasonable) in the earliest stage of fatigue or unbeautiful emotion.
[From Michael Hanian on juggling:]
I accidentally found, then practiced, then mastered (smile) a technique based on a very simple thing: switching over. This diversion technique has proved to be so powerful that I have started to share this with others whenever I can. In a nutshell, it’s a practice of switching over to a different activity every time there is either a slightest sign of fatigue or any sort of hindrance. At such moment, I immediately switch to something else: read news headlines, step outside, make a call, reply an email, etc. In just a few minutes, I get back to whatever I was doing, and almost without exception, I feel energized and can move on with my projects.
Michael, wonderful. I’m beginning to work with your method. It is customary for people to take breaks, but rare to take one (when reasonable) in the earliest stage of fatigue or unbeautiful emotion.
Over my 31 years of working as a city letter carrier on the same route I have rarely had the fortunate opportunity to take a real vacation. My one adult memorial vacation was spending 3 weeks in France in 2000. I must have visited every cathedral constructed to “the glory of God.” What an amazing emotional feeling standing inside Chartres and overlooking the city of Paris from the top of Notre Dame! I remember feeling over-awed by determination of man in his attempt to worship God.
One thing I also remember: the undefinable “presence” of spirit – both of the divine and the human – in these monuments to Deity. The past 15 years have been spent caring for my “significant other” who will eventually pass this earth due to an incurable illness. Time is indeed precious especially when it is spent with another human being. I do not regret working so much either as a “mailman” or as a “caretaker.” Sure, there are things I want to do and places I would like to visit, but I believe the whole of this universe is open to exploration and we have eternity to work out our prayerful dreams. If I have learned just one thing from this mortal life it would be “patience.”
Marc, this is an inspiring story of a human life. How few people realize that our eternal life begins here, and that we have eternity to complete the tasks that our truly ours! I know what a difference a mailman’s quality of attitude can make; he can bless a home with his passing presence. And your loving service to your significant other radiates to him, to God, and to those who know you. Thank you for sharing!
Over my 31 years of working as a city letter carrier on the same route I have rarely had the fortunate opportunity to take a real vacation. My one adult memorial vacation was spending 3 weeks in France in 2000. I must have visited every cathedral constructed to “the glory of God.” What an amazing emotional feeling standing inside Chartres and overlooking the city of Paris from the top of Notre Dame! I remember feeling over-awed by determination of man in his attempt to worship God.
One thing I also remember: the undefinable “presence” of spirit – both of the divine and the human – in these monuments to Deity. The past 15 years have been spent caring for my “significant other” who will eventually pass this earth due to an incurable illness. Time is indeed precious especially when it is spent with another human being. I do not regret working so much either as a “mailman” or as a “caretaker.” Sure, there are things I want to do and places I would like to visit, but I believe the whole of this universe is open to exploration and we have eternity to work out our prayerful dreams. If I have learned just one thing from this mortal life it would be “patience.”
Marc, this is an inspiring story of a human life. How few people realize that our eternal life begins here, and that we have eternity to complete the tasks that our truly ours! I know what a difference a mailman’s quality of attitude can make; he can bless a home with his passing presence. And your loving service to your significant other radiates to him, to God, and to those who know you. Thank you for sharing!