The Narrative Within

A Walk With Lost Light

Posted on August 13, 2014 by Art for Housewives

Day 13

getting there

the Blue Star is ever-present

tamarisks and recycled seating

is this foragable?

rocks in the water

Blue door near the Blue Lounge

I’ve been reading Rebecca Solnit’s “A Field Guide to Getting Lost”. She’s fixated with blue:

“The world is blue at its edges and in its depths. This blue is the light that got lost. Light at the blue end of the spectrum does not travel the whole distance from the sun to us. It disperses among the molecules of the air, it scatters in the water…the blue of distance…the color of where you can never go.”

The Blu Lounge

The last People Populated Place I walk past before arriving at Krios beach is The Blu Lounge thus called because the pavement is painted blue. From now on, until Krios, I will no longer see the bright colors of plastic beach toys, semi-sexy swimsuits, souvenir towels and recently pedicured toenails.

The colors that will dominated my view will be those of sunburned vegetation, mineral tinted dirt, weathered rocks and blue…the blue of the sky above and the blue of the sea spreading out next to me. But, unlike that of Solnit, this blue will not get lost because it will find a home in my memory.

Blue

To keep the mantra color coordinated with today’s theme, I’ve chosen a song by the Mood Blues, “Ride My See-Saw”.

Riding a see-saw is a form of reciprocity. You take turns going up and down. It’s also an act of faith—you count on the other not to jump off while you’re in mid-air.

Agreeing to ride the see-saw is a recognition that we’re in this life together.

See-saw up. See-saw down. See-saw up. See-saw down.

Posted in Health & Healing, Paros | Tagged Blu Lounge Paros, Blue, Blue Star, Paros, Walking as a spiritual practice | 2 Comments

Swaying Like Bamboo

Posted on August 11, 2014 by Art for Housewives

Day 12

getting closer all the time

Chapel by The Sea, Paros

a little chapel by the sea

Rock Wall, Paros

another rock in the wall

near Parian Village, Paros

Near the Parian Village

Fig Tree near Parian village

Wild Fig On The Road

Bamboo, Paros

Bamboo growing in front of the Parian Village Hotel

Bamboo knows how to sway and this keeps it from breaking. Thus being rigid does not make someone strong. It makes them obtuse.

What’s important is to be well-rooted because roots keep you anchored. Exploration is fundamental in life but one should never stray too far from their essence.

Bamboo has been around for about 7,000 years. It’s an extremely versatile plant and is used for construction, food, medicine, etc. Bamboo can also detox corrupted soil. It’s been around for so long because it knows how to adapt.

Bamboo can teach us the difference between resilience and resistance.

To maintain my ontology, I must learn to absorb the blows.

The Bamboo that bends is stronger than the Oak that resists. – Japanese Proverb

In the distance, the Blu Lounge

Inspired by bamboo, the mantra today comes from the song “Sway”.

Sway sway sway. Om. Sway sway sway.

related links: lyrics to “Sway” + The Rolling Stones performing Sway in Texas, 2005 + Be like the bamboo: 7 lessons from the Japanese forest

Posted in Health & Healing, Paros | Tagged Bamboo, Paros, Walking as a spiritual practice | Leave a comment

Beaches and Bodies

Posted on August 10, 2014 by Art for Housewives

Day 11

One of the most difficult aspects of walking daily is just getting out of the house. Like this morning—I was working on a drawing and wanted to finish it but, reluctantly, had to stop because it was time for The Walk.

Onar, Sun beds & Bar

These sun beds will soon be occupied by Beach Bodies.

Mar Tango, Sun beds & Bar

A blanket of sun beds that will be transformed into a blanket of bodies.

The Japanese have a tradition of Onsen Baths where men and women bath together in the nude. But with decorum. And have you ever noticed that when Japanese women smile they cover their mouths?

Walking down a crowded beach teaches me a lot about the human race. It teaches me how we inter-relate with others, how we transform “our space” into “my space”, how we transform something private into something public. For example, women who blatantly butter their buttocks with toxic creams in front of strangers. Soft porn.

Decorum is on vacation, too.

How much of me is my body?

Even before Descartes, Plato was mutilating the symbiotic rapport between mind and body. Dichotomized, we’re often schizophrenic in our judgments.

Finally, I’m going far from the madding crowd.

Today’s mantra comes from Jimmy Hendrix’ “Foxy Lady” — “I’m tired of wasting all my precious time”.

Don’t waste precious time OM don’t waste precious time.

related links: Foxy Lady Lyrics + Dualism + Far from the Madding Crowd

Posted in Health & Healing, Paros | Tagged Beaches and bodies, Livadia, Onsen baths, Paros | 2 Comments

Keep Your Eyes On The Road

Posted on August 9, 2014 by Art for Housewives

Day 10

My walks to Krios continue.

There are several small hotels in Livadia. And many have rooms facing the sea.

And, looking frontally at these hotels, I’m reminded of a photographer of many years back who did a series of building facades called Pleasure Places. Too bad I can’t remember his name.

The Road of Livadia

At this point, there is no place to walk but the road as part of the beach has been swallowed by the sea. It is the part of the walk I dislike the most.

hold on

Some drivers act as if they’re preparing for the Grand Prix. And men driving scooters breeze around so fast because they want the women behind them to hold on tight.

I just hope they watch where they’re going.

But, finally, I can start walking on the beach.

Livadia Beach , Paros

The beach and its bodies.

Bubble Park, Livadia

BubblePark, Livadia

Today’s mantra comes from the Doors’ “Roadhouse Blues” and it’s “Keep your eyes on the road” which is another way of saying “stay focused”.

I have a tendency to want to do a million things simultaneously. Last year, here on Paros, I wrote about Pruning a Lifestyle and my need to de-clutter my To Do List. Which meant establishing my priorities.

For my summer on Paros this year, I made a list of things I wanted to accomplish. Initially, the list was very long but I got it down to The Top Five which really meant getting it down to The Top Three (which included this walking project). Making such a list is a kind of Know Thyself process because you must decide what you consider important since you can’t focus on everything simultaneously.

Keep your eyes on the road OM Keep your eyes on the road.

Mantras help distract you from your distractions.

Posted in Living With Less, Paros | Tagged keep your eyes on the road, Livadia, Paros, Walking as a spiritual practice | Leave a comment

Sea glass collecting makes me bend my body

Posted on August 9, 2014 by Art for Housewives

Day 9

Let me start off by thanking Jo for telling me about Michael Moore’s walks. Moore decided to walk 30 minutes every day. He explained the desire to do so by saying: The path to happiness – and deep down, we all know this — is created by love, and being kind to oneself, sharing a sense of community with others, becoming a participant instead of a spectator, and being in motion. Moving. Physically moving around all day. Lifting things, even if it’s yourself. Going for a walk every day will change your thinking and have a ripple effect.

And I agree–walking does change your thinking. Walking gives your body a rhythm and lets you synchronize yourself with yourself. Body and brain move together marrying the motion within physical space to the motion within the self. Maybe that’s why Thoreau considered walking a transcendental experience.

The promontory in the background is the highlight of my walk.

Walkingwise, the easiest part–a shaded boardwalk at Livadia.

And the boardwalk ends here.

Searching for sea glass on the beach…

sea glass inside a plastic bottle as a door stop

in the corner, more of my sea glass stash

Sea glass is just broken glass weathered and worn by the sea. The constant motion of the waves smooths out the rough edges. It’s what happens to me when I walk–my sharpness loses its edge.

Today’s mantra comes from one of my favorite Greek singers, Eleftheria Arvanitaki. The song is “Δυνατά” (dinata) which can be translated roughly as “strength” although I’ve seen it translated as “might”, too. But the idea is the same. Anyway, Eleftheria sings that, like a woman, night gives birth to day and the impossible becomes possible.

Dinata, dinata, dinata, om dinata.

related links: Seaglass Journal for collectors + Eleftheria Arvanitaki + Walking
by Henry David Thoreau pdf + Saskia and her dog

Posted in Health & Healing, Paros | Tagged Paros, Paros Livadia, seaglass, Walking as a spiritual practice | Leave a comment