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"I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather my spark burn out in a brilliant blaze than be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy, permanent planet. The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time." ~Jack London

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

What Tomorrow Will Bring



My internet has been very “iffy” lately, so I apologize for the lack of updates. I’d like to say that it’s fixed, but who knows what tomorrow will bring.

On my way home this evening, I passed a house on the corner with three blue towels hanging from the second floor window. They looked so beautiful swinging in the hot summer air, dancing like streamers against the empty white wall.

I thought of the enchanting Indian woman in her orange dress, hanging laundry out to dry beneath the palm fronds in Goa. We were in the hospital. Poor Claire had gotten the measles from one of the children we were working with, and as she slept away her 103-degree fever, I sat watching the quietness of the world outside.

The colorful clothes swung gently on the line, back and forth, on top of what appeared to be an abandoned building. By the time I had finished fixing Claire’s IV that had managed to reverse itself, and returned to the window, the woman had vanished. A dog ran wildly about, and I wondered how he had gotten up there, and more importantly, how he planned to get down. The clothes continued to wave.

They hung everywhere, those beautiful fabrics, and while I’d always noticed them, this was the first instance I could recall being truly moved by their eloquence. There was something about the simplicity of the scene that left me with a feeling of serenity I hadn’t felt in such a very long time. I remember writing in my journal that I’d miss the exquisiteness of those kinds of daily routines when I got home.

And I did. I missed them. But when I saw those blue towels hanging there this morning, I realized it wasn’t the fabric that I missed. It wasn’t the laundry waving in the Indian wind; it was the sense of calm I felt watching it. It was the peaceful feeling that can only come from true relaxation, from taking the time to breathe in the sweetness of life.

And it isn’t America that’s forgotten how to do that. It was me. Somewhere along the way I had forgotten how to dance in the moonlight, to sing as though no one was listening, to stop and watch the universe float in the breeze. My life had once again become about money and schedules and chores. It had reverted back to what I had hoped to leave behind.

But magic doesn’t leave one’s life so easily. I can still feel it. I know it’s still there. It’s in the flowers I’ve planted in the backyard (in the picture above), and the visions of India I see when I close my eyes to sleep at night, and the blue towels hanging from the window on the corner. It’s all around me. It’s everywhere.

My life hasn’t reverted back to what I had hoped to leave behind. It can’t. It never will. I can only go forward, into today, into tomorrow, not knowing what any of it will bring. I can only continue hoping, wishing, longing, for a little more magic, a little more beauty to fill my every day.

12 comments:

alan said...

As I drink in your words, I am grateful for the beauty you bring to my day each time I find my way here!

alan

mareymercy said...

"I realized it wasn’t the fabric that I missed. It wasn’t the laundry waving in the Indian wind; it was the sense of calm I felt watching it."

Lovely observations; in our rushed, crazy lives it can be hard to slow down and appreciate simplicity.

Anonymous said...

Important revelations! May you continue to see the exquisite magic in all your days to come. Be well.

M said...

I love the last paragraph, so profound! I'm reading this first thing in my morning as well, so feels very deep!
I'm glad your internet is working again, I do love reading your posts.

gkgirl said...

you are so right about this...we need to be aware, to slow down, to take the time, to notice...

thanks for the gentle reminder...
:)

Craig Roberts said...

Frankie

I am once again captured by your voice,
your thoughts are transcending and
set my heart afire!
It is my love affair with life that
you have mentioned here.
Thank you, again, for the enlightening poetry of your heart.

Sky said...

I remember clothes swaying in the breeze from clotheslines in our backyard when I was a child, the smell of sunshine in them as I collected them dry from the line, the stiffness of the dried cloth when they were done. I liked to hang them on the line in some kind of order, always using one clothespin for the corners of 2 pieces of laundry being hung side by side. Sometimes when I was even younger I would hide under the long sheet folded across the line like it was a tent. It would fall almost to the ground. Good memories - thank you. :)

You are learning important lessons to carry you through life - taking time out to live each moment, to pay attention is such a gift. We never have this particular moment again. Always good to read your posts, Frankie. You are such a special young woman whose life will always be full.

Cinnamon Spider! said...

You always write such sensitive heart-warming blog posts. It is so nice to see someone who really appriciates the beauty in the world.

meghan said...

absolutely beautiful. thank you. i really really needed that reminder today! xoox

hollibobolli said...

I love coming here so I can get inspired to be more positive and calm. Dammit - I can be calm too!!

liz elayne lamoreux said...

this brings me such hope...your words...your outlook.
hugs and smooches to you my dear and you walk forward, head high, slight smile, on your journey, on your way...

MB said...

Beautiful, Frankie, thank you.