So instead of focusing on myself in this moment, I decided to zoom in on the anatomy of a cloud. A lonely one - at least as we perceive it to be externally.
Lately, there has been an influx of decisions by friends and acquaintances to "take a year off" or to "plan ahead without pause for the arrival of a romantic partner." These decisions, because there have been many in such a short time, have caused me a moment of pause.
I revisit my capturing of cloud and now see this as a free cloud. One that makes decisions on where to drift on its own. Having a close regard and almost helplessness to the forces of the wind - all along, floating in a straight path as I watch it move left to right. No, it is not a cloud large enough to block out the brightness of the sun, or the glint of the distant moon in the largely clear blue sky, but enough to catch notice (at least by unsuspecting me).
Even the sheer curtain prevents me from seeing the clear and wispy outline of its form, but my spirit impacted enough to record it in history, to share it here with you.
Clarified decisions. When we are motivated to sit up and take notice. To acknowledge the difference between being whole and missing something that society has defined as necessary to the human experience. Wandering as a cloud now, no longer lonely. Instead we take our journeys alone and have our lives fulfilled by personal growth and reflection. Together, separately, and aligned with a resiliency that uncovers the delicate and impactful presence of a cloud (ourselves), in a space as open as the blue sky, what possibility is as vast as this?!
Wordsworth was onto something with his words. Allowing for room to experience the joy of solo contemplation accompanied by the beauty of nature. We have so much to learn from her (nature), that could reveal to us the secrets of life and of development. Of relationships and our obligation to ourselves, our hearts as Wordsworth says "...they flash upon that inward eye." We've got some good solo work to do. Let's start today.
I Wandered As Lonely As A Cloud
by William Wordsworth
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed---and gazed---but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed---and gazed---but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
Thanks for reading,
~Hasta Pronto
