Uncorking the Bottle

No secret that my daily practice of trying to gather experience in the net of language is somehow something I simply have to do. Some people’s minds are still water, some are on a low simmer, but mine, for better or worse, is a constant rollicking boil. Whether it be a Zoom class or a workshop or an interview, someone asks me a short question that lasts five seconds and off I go for 5 to 15 minutes. A bit like uncorking a bottle and out comes the genie (related to the word genius, our unique pattern of soul) and the one wish it rarely grants is that it be silent. J

 

I have to consider the simplistic conclusion that I’m just one of those obnoxious mansplainers that can’t shut up and should have stopped 4 minutes and 55 seconds ago and anybody shaking their head in agreement is entitled to their opinion. But others listen attentively and notice that I’m tying in all sorts of ideas normally outside of the question and bringing them together inside of an answer that goes far beyond the simple sound-byte, that generates more questions and leads to more ideas and reveals the true complexity of even the simplest questions. A lifetime of reading, writing, thinking doesn’t automatically qualify me to do so, but in many cases, has gifted me the ability to thread them all together in a coherent whole. I’m not boasting about it nor feeling shamed by it, it simply is my truth and hey, I suppose that’s partly what writing these blogposts is for.

 

I often begin these posts with an image, a phrase, a thought, that leads to other thoughts and helps me make sense of what just happened to me on that day. But without such a lead for today, I decided to just start writing and see what came out.

 

And this was it.