Ebbing and Flowing

There has been no breaking news in my life lately. My plants are growing as expected, my apartment is clean, my stuff is organized. I attend various social events and occasionally meet new people. I read and paint and work.

I kind of think that everyone goes through periods of their life where they simply bob up and down with the ebb and flow of the tide. At one point or another, they probably feel like consistency is more difficult than tribulation.

I've experienced some pretty turbulant (literal) waters. As a river guide, I got to see some pretty decent rapids. The rush of successfuly rowing through those waves is incredible. But for all of the time I've spent in water, I am not a strong swimmer. Last summer, this particular weakness caused my nose to break as it collided with the ocean floor in Maracas Bay, Trinidad. I'm not familiar with ocean currents, so when a large wave came I got worked. In fact I feel fortunate that a broken nose is the only injury I sustained from that incident.

Conclusion: While the little ups and downs of every day life can become monotonous, I think they're important--they allow the rush of great victories to sink in, and the broken noses of failure to heal.

Word of the Day: Undulatoriness

"The grand and majestic have always somewhat of the undulatoriness of the sphere. It is the secret of majesty in the rolling gait of the elephant, and of all grace in action and in art. Always the line of beauty is a curve."

--Henry David Thoreau, "The Service"