Sometimes You Just Need To Throw Your Ring Off a Balcony

Life has a funny way of showing you what you need to do. Sometimes, what originally seems like the worst possible circumstances is exactly what needs to happen. This is true on all degrees of levels. It might not be clear at first, and you might even refuse to accept it or unable to believe it. Sometimes in those devastating moments we need to find stillness. If you can just calm yourself from the inside out and look at the world through clear and unbiased eyes all the answers will come flowering straight to you. This practice is nothing new, either. The Art of Taoism was crafted and perfected for over two thousand years. 

"Once Confucius was looking down into a gorge where a great waterfall crashed down to a huge roiling chasm so violent that no fish, tortoises, or even alligators could survive there. Suddenly he noticed an old man appear to tumble over the falls into the maelstrom. Horrified, Confucius, along with several of his disciples, ran downstream in hope of saving the poor unfortunate, only to find him strolling merrily along the bank, singing to himself." 

- Chuang Tzu

A couple weeks ago I accidentally threw a very precious ring of mine (a Chakra ring) off the Balcony, it was dark and we could only hear the sickening 3 story fall before it got lost somewhere in our neighbors jungle. Literally, it is a jungle. I did not mean to throw it, but it was a cold night and as I was cleaning our deck of leaves from a huge tree it just flung right off. Of course I immediately in a frenzied panic ran down to fruitlessly search for it, for hours in the dark cold. I even had my boyfriend and our neighbor helping me, with tiny flashlights. It was no good. 

For days I was busy, panicked and frenzied. Film School keeps one extremely busy and my Schedule does not really include daylight hours for searching forestry backyards. That did not stop me from having both my boyfriend and our neighbor look - and seeing as our neighbor was a huge gardener it seemed a good chance. A week went by and no cigar. I felt helpless and devastated. This was not just any ring. I had not taken this ring off for over a year and I could still feel it's weight on my hand. I felt so naked without it. It kept my chakras aligned and without it I felt displaced, as if somehow everything was wrong and off. I had fallen out of alignment and my stress level just continued to rise. Of course, I still had no time to search for it more then a handful of scattered minutes here and there... and the couple chances I did have to look for hours I was always growing more and more sure I would never find it, and more and more unhappy. 

Finally Halloween (today) rolled around, and by some sort of random miracle I had nothing I needed to do (at least not until later in the day) and my morning was free to search. So search I went, in the pouring rain with a bright red umbrella and the knowledge floating in the back of my subconscious mind that if I did not find it today, I never would. Once again we looked and looked, thinking about the physics and gravity and even which face the ring would end rolling up. That familiar sad panic began to set in, and as our search was proving once again fruitless I just momentarily closed my eyes and found a stillness... an inner peace and acceptance. If I did not find that ring, then maybe It was not meant to be mine... Maybe I did not require it anymore, and someone else or thing would. Just after this acceptance while standing in the middle of the garden, about to leave I opened my eyes and the first thing I saw was a shine of silver. 

I did not react, I paused. Still, my eyesight adjusting to the light again and fixating my depth perception to pull the sliver of silver into focus. Amidst a thorny twiggy mess of a plant, at the very seam they all rooted together was nestled a strand of silver. I kept staring, feeling the time to move had not yet come. Then everything came clear, or rather everything else went out of focus and there was my ring, meters ahead of my literally entangled by thick brown twigs, barely visible but certainly there. 

Only then I acted, moving forward and claiming what was always mine. As I put it on I realized it had not even broken, scratched or chipped... The whole jeweled interface was just as it had been, cleaner even. The band however, had been bent - but at just the right angle that the ring fit snug, as opposed to just a hint too loose that it would always slip around on my finger, it's weight attracted by gravity. 

Now it's perfect... and all because I threw it off a balcony. 

elatedly, 

Danielle

Haunting Halloween

Zombie McCain... Sounds about right. 

That is probably the most flattering picture I have ever seen of McCain. Seriously. Zombies are cooler then he is. I mean, there is national Zombie Walk day in almost every city, I have never heard of a national McCain day where everybody dresses up like McCain and tries to walk like him..(although, that would be a scary sight!) I would take a street full of Zombie's over McCain any day.... Now all we need is a Zombie Palin and everything will be perfect. 

Anyway, I lost my favorite ring over the balcony yesterday, my hand was cold and it just slipped right off. Needless to say I have been quite devastated over this fact, and have combed my neighbours backyard in a recklessly futile attempt to re-discover it. Hopefully one of these days I will find it nestled hidden under some leaf or crevice somewhere, because it was a very important ring and I just do not know how it managed to vanish like that. Let me tell you, it is no small ring. The length of my index finger actually. 

So some firecrackers just went off... It's only 10 in the morning, that seems a little early (even on Halloween) for fireworks... Odd, maybe they are practicing... or maybe they think it's overcast enough it will work anyway. I think that's all I've got for this morning, so enjoy your chocolate and treats... but just watch out for the candy-coins, I've heard they have some of that deadly melamine in them. 

Cats! Cats! Cats!

Loata

So there are two primary type of people in this world. No, not males and females, or liberals and conservatives or even hard-workers and slackers. Nope what I am talking about is a little bit more basic but surprisingly revealing. In our world we have two kinds of people, cat people and dog people. 

Thats it. It is that simple. 

Dog people I have noticed are generally more active, like to be the center of attention or at least have attention, and have the strangest obsession with dressing their little poochies up. (okay, so maybe that is just a select handful of the dog-loving-people...) Cat people on the other hand, are generally artists of one kind or another and think their cat is the greatest cat even if it is psycho or just spends all the time hiding in a closet. 

The reason? It is very simple. Cats are not by nature human-loving animals, not the same way dogs are... but if you raise a cat the right way, it will not only love you but that love will blow you away. Like last night for example, my newest feline Loata came to join us in bed like every night but for the first time ever she burrowed herself completely under the covers and came to cuddle up against me purring away. If that was not adorable enough, Saicha - the most gorgeous cat in the world - made her bird-like chirp sound to let her know she wanted some attention too and jumped up onto my pillow, massaging my head and shoulders with her paws and nuzzling my cheek while also purring. 

The greatest thing about cats is, they are intelligent enough to completely take care of themselves. Aside from changing their little box every now and then, you do not have to do anything else. Some cats you can train to use, and flush a human toilet. I have yet to see a dog do that. 

It is an amazing feeling to know that such an intelligent animal has chosen to love you. Not just loves you because you provide food and water and just wants attention period. 

Saicha

Obama The Great

Okay, so he is not president; yet. I might not be American but I live in Canada and ultimately am equally effected by the President of the United States as I am over the Prime Minister, by the way who is terrible enough on his own accord. Could you imagine the disarray North America would fall into if McCain & Harper were the two conservative heads. Anyone directly involved in oil would benefit, but everyone else would suffer. 

The thing about Obama is that he actually cares. Do you really want someone running your country who doesn't care about you? About your country and what is really best for both it, and you? Or do you want someone who is going to do something, inspire positive change. Something American society in general really requires. Why is so much money, more now then ever, being pumped into a war against innocent people? A war on terror, what does that even mean? 

Wikipedia defines terror as something that provides "an overwhelming sense of imminent danger." That's it. That is the definition. America has a war on an overwhelming sense of imminent danger? 

Does that mean America is at war with global warming? or cancer? or better yet themselves? September 11th was a terrible and devastating tragedy, do not get me wrong - but that was years ago. Last time I checked, years did not translate as imminent. 

This is something Obama knows. He wants to change that, and re-focus on America. 

Palin has been quoted as saying she plans (and I say she, because I truly believe she has plans of becoming president herself, not vice president) to continue the war, increase the efforts and even that the american economy is better then ever - right before that big stock market drop. McCain gave this woman power as a publicity stunt, when really only a complete idiot would give someone as power hungry as Palin that sort of power and influence. Obama could have easily chosen Hilary as his VP if he had wanted to play that card, but he didn't - he chose someone he actually and truly thought could do the job. 

... So really, who do you want running your country? Just think about it, meditate on it even - and then vote in six days. 

Listening to the Rhythm of the Atmosphere

I love being a woman. I do not care what any male psychologists have claimed about women secretly harboring penis-envy, I just can not think of anything better for me. Sure there are still stereotypes and discrimination within our modern world but glass ceilings or no we ladies have an advantage. I am not talking about our breasts and vaginas, either. Although, honestly speaking I do not think I know any guy who would not openly admit to having wished once or twice he could temporarily at least have his own pair of breasts. Maybe the whole problem with this world isn't penis-envy, but breast-envy. Seriously speaking and all jest aside, those very social norms girls are raised and accustomed too, from the "pink it's a girl" everything to the separated and gender-distinctive McDonald's toys all the way up to the available fashion, t.v shoes, movies, books, magazines - all aimed at telling a girl exactly what she is "supposed" to be. Some of these things are so socially accepted and embedded right down into the very foundation of our society that they can sometimes slip right beneath our radar, even if we try to catch them. 

However, while this fact might seem alarming to some I have accepted it with loving arms. There is a certain strength to being a woman and I am not only talking about how physically our bodies are meant to handle pain (I mean, nature built us to give birth. No man can come close to accomplishing that little creation.) but our genuine love for communication which has been cultured so subtly into us is one very unique tool. We can harness our ability to socialize and connect and create communities for this world that are more well thought out, based on love and compassion, and working as a universal one. After all, we are the master creators - not men. 

Do not get me wrong, I am no feminist, well no more then the average female. Men can do amazing things, many of which woman just naturally are not as good at (however able to achieve with enough hard work and determination, as anything is.) There have been a lot of famous, world-changing, important men. As there have been women. I just think the world right now needs to calm down a little, and loose perhaps just a little bit of it's testosterone. 

As for girls growing up and being cultured into these little nobodies... Well I do not think we have anything to worry about, the generation of girls I have grown up with is a powerful generation of females, I am glad to know many of the amazing women I have met. What I also know, is more and more younger girls I meet are way cooler, beyond their years... and I am not talking about wearing hip clothes and more make-up. I am talking about seeing themselves as beautiful no matter what, seeing themselves as individuals, seeing themselves as capable of doing whatever they want to do. 

love all you bitches, 

Danielle 

- this pondering post was inspired by the daily Q&A at carrie and danielle 

The Time Has Come

Once upon a time, like any obsessive teenager I blogged all the time about spontaneous complaints and ponderings on life, but time somehow lulled those rants until eventually I had dipped into a quiet spell I could no more explain then originally notice. Life, got in the way. Quite simply I was just go-go-go, jumping from one project to the next and just letting those little moments which bring the much needed flavor and variety slip by undetected. Nothing seemed worth writing anymore, and if it did I never had the time to write it.

Life however, is not about keeping yourself so busy in the day-to-day but about experiencing every day. Do not let yourself get lost in routine but break free from tedious ritual and breathe the insightful spiritualness in every mundane task.

Being stuck in a rut is no fun.

So right here and now I am free of that rut, and my contained silence is no longer present. Instead my insights will fall on this blog page as they come, about the big or the littlest things that I have opinions on. After all, I do not want to ever start and become opinion less with no voice.

Thank you, and Good night.
dStar