Clouds Illusions

Recently, we had a "Joni-Mitchell-Clouds-Illusions-type" day -- recall her 1966 hit song, "Both Sides Now."   (Click on the link to listen to the song.) 

The clouds throughout the day were magnificent! 

"Rows and floes of angel hair,
Ice cream castles in the air,
And feather canyons everywhere,
::
But now they only block the sun."

It was one of those days when Creation's Beauty invited us to slow down, notice our surroundings, and reflect on life.

Are your Life Plans all lined up?
(Photo:  "Rows and floes of angel hair" - Larry Gardepie)

Like the clouds, the song speaks to the changes and temporariness of life:  we assume we know what is the next best thing for us... then the Winds of Life blow... and we are left wondering.

"It's clouds illusions I recall,
I really don't know clouds at all."

Is it an illusion to know what's best for ourselves and others?  How do we respond when we don't get what we want?

What happens when obstacles block your dreams?
(Photo:  "But now they only block the Sun" - Larry Gardepie)

The challenge, I believe, is to dream and hope and plan... balanced with a healthy acceptance of floating and adjusting. That is, the willingness to:

• Welcome and embrace the unexpected;
• Adapt and flow with new experiences; and,
• Consider and adjust when previously unseen Truths Emerge.

Maybe that's the purpose of life: to have our dreams AND to evolve our understanding of purpose, values, and connectedness.

What don't you know?
(Photo: "Ice cream castles in the air" - Larry Gardepie)

What is beautiful about Joni's prophetic song is her repetition of the words "Both Sides Now":

"I've looked at clouds from both sides now."
"I've looked at love from both sides now."
"I've looked at life from both sides now"

It's the humble acceptance that we might not know everything right now, we must stay in dialogue with others, and our illusions (assumptions?) might change.

Let's be open to looking at both sides now!

Larry Gardepie

Dialogue San Diego Consulting

Clouds and Water: This Too Shall Pass

Have you  ever noticed how beautiful and varied clouds are: bright and fluffy; wispy and misty; dark and menacing?  Clouds and our atmosphere seem to share or reflect our moods!

As children, we would look for shapes of animals or people that we recognized.  Time passed... and we paid less attention: the shapes changed; our experiences diversified; and we focused on other interests.

What do you see in today's clouds?
(Photo:  Sunset at Sea - Larry Gardepie)

Now, years later, we look at clouds and weather much differently:  harbingers of a storm on the horizon; forecasts of what tomorrow will bring; tools to plan trips and outings.  Rather than seeing what the clouds are revealing to us in the moment, we are attempting to adjust our schedules or events around good or bad weather patterns.  We have placed values or made judgements and decisions on how we read the situation.

Moving from clouds to water, I wonder about the nurturing cycle of droplets that amass in clouds and rivers... that passage of time when thoughts are condensed and held suspended or rained down and gathered in movement and change.

Do you hold onto the past or worry about the future?
(Photo:  Gullfoss Waterfall, Iceland - Larry Gardepie)

I have learned that the passing of time is conveyed by both.  "Get your head out of the clouds" or "Much water has passed under that bridge," my friends would tell me, as I would reflect on, relive or try to understand something that happened in the past.

As I grow older and return to cloud-watching, I notice a calmness as I slip back into the present:

• The beauty of our world;
• The mystery of other people; and,
  
• The awe of life and the diversity of ideas and ways of being

 

When did you last look at the world or
a person in wonder and awe?
(Photo:  Sunrise at Sea - Larry Gardepie)

Maybe we can take a portion of each day and recapture the wonder of childhood... by staying in the present... seeking wisps of Ideas Shared... and pausing for a movement into Presence Changed.  Rather than live in rivers of energy that move us through anxiety rapids or emotions flooded and out of control, maybe we can see life for what it is... beautiful creations of imagination, wonder, and change.

Larry Gardepie

Dialogue San Diego Consulting

(click on link for website)