I have been absent for a while, not for the lack of desire to write, only for a lack of clarity. Life moves so quickly that we barely hang on to the rails never mind see where the journey is leading. In essence recently I gave in-allowing my higher authority to have its’ way with my life and direction-we humans have  a difficult time giving up the reigns I guess but I just decided to allow myself to stop being so in charge of my daily struggle. The result has been a bit of clarity but more importantly a feeling of joy that I have had a hard time fathoming lately, I would prefer there was something standing in the way of feeling joy but instead it was my own lack of awareness.

I walked again today and the realization of how much a child can see and enjoy the simplest things while the adult doesn’t have time to stop or smell anything occurred to me. Even if there was a rose around or the occasional garden to stroll through, when do we stop and listen to our environment. I am finding that every time I walk I end up realizing my surroundings and have a better understanding of life and more of a desire to write. The feeling would be like a person walking around with dark glasses and suddenly taking them off, the colors seem brighter, the surroundings clearer. Add all the other senses to that same awareness and the artist or writer feels as if they have just woken out of a dream.

I watched the cool gray colors of the lake, the silence of the empty field was extremely relaxing even if I was sweating from being very out of shape, okay my son would appreciate me admitting this fact. I could see the cars flying by on the bridge, the same bridge we had walked many time before, but now those cars almost seemed like a view from outside the treadmill. I took a break from everything, I listened to the birds and the breezes without listening to politics, the media or friends and family with their own distractions. I suddenly am aware of solitude, I can smell the cedar from a recently stained fence, notice pigeons high in the sky acting more like eagles than lowly pigeons.

My perspective changed, I have heard that exercise causes endorphins in the brain to rage, well I could feel those endorphins and it was pretty amazing. I also think a body or mind in motion tends to stay in motion. I think we too often dig ourselves into the politics of the day and the anger and frustration without realizing our lives are smaller and more intimate than the media would have us believe. We need to find joy in the simple things that we do and the happiness we lack is the byproduct of experiencing the simplicity of joy.

I have a friend that lives with a passion, she is a cook, an author, a creative and she lives her life like an artist uses a brush, I think I can see better into others’ lives than my own and realize how well or unwell others actions affect their own happiness-this realization has not only grown my admiration for a life well spent but intrigued me to live closer to the idea of being free to feel and experience my life, not as a long and boring repetitive sequel but a painting with many different colors and strokes for texture, each person that comes into my life will add the different hues and create a subject matter that I can be inspired by.

It’s amazing what a walk can do-brings us questions and makes those answers not only clearer but strikes up more questions for us to ask. This is the impetus to write and this is the purpose for clarity. I would love to know how my readers find clarity. Do you search for clarity in writing, philosophy, exercise-what is your process for allowing the muses to have their way with you?