Land of Plenty– At West End Gallery
Negativism to the pain and ferocity of life is negativism to life.
We are not there until we can say “yea” to it all.
To take a righteous attitude toward anything is to denigrate it.
Awe is what moves us forward.
As you proceed through life, following your own path, birds will shit on you.
Don’t bother to brush it off.
Having a comedic view of your situation gives you spiritual distance. Having a sense of humor saves.
— Joseph Campbell, A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living (1991)
I thought about yesterday’s post for a long time after it went online and it kind of bothered me. Even though it was not meant to be negative or woe-is-me, it still felt that way to me.
I felt that in it I was painting this past year with too dark a color, one that didn’t reflect the fact that even though it was a challenging year there were also joyful and illuminating moments that provided invaluable lessons.
Joseph Campbell expressed just this sentiment on the page before the one with the passage at the top in his Reflections on the Art of Living:
“Opportunities to find deeper powers within ourselves come when life seems most challenging.”
I know that this is the truth. Nearly every lesson that has ultimately benefited, directed, and shaped me thus far in this life has come as a result of some the most challenging moments in my life. I wouldn’t erase those moments of pain or suffering for fear that I would lose those lessons. The insight and experience I gained was worth far more to me than sparing myself the pain that it took to acquire these things.
This year, though I call it awful, has provided me the opportunity to rediscover a belief in the goodness and kindness of people that had all but disappeared in recent years. It taught me to unconditionally accept kindness and love that was offered to me. It allowed me to understand that our burdens do not have to be shouldered alone, that there are more folks willing and wanting to take on some of the load.
It reinforced to me the point that our time here in this world is limited, maybe much more so than we would like to believe at any given moment. This limited time should not be spent not on grievance and complaint. It should be spent on appreciating and spreading whatever joy we can find in it.
There’s more, of course. But you get the gist. This past year has been challenging but those lessons alone have made it worthwhile.
I may occasionally curse the year 2025 but deep down I am thankful for it. It has been, as Campbell says, just some bird shit along the way.
Believe me, I know the feeling. While I was walking in the local cemetery a few years back, I had a crow take a dump on me as I passed underneath him as he sat on a tree branch six or seven feet above me. He gave such a satisfied caw just after its warm excrement hit and ran down the back of my neck that I burst out laughing. I think we both had pretty good laugh.
Campbell would approve; I am sure.
So, 2025, you can do your damnedest, but I am still going to wear it proudly. You might think you showered me with crap but I will find some gold in it, guaranteed
Here’s Brittany Howard and the Alabama Shakes with This Feeling. Good stuff in every way.
Redtree Times 