Akira and the Knife Visitors...

There once was a girl by the rhyme of Akira

She lived in the omelet between the Haley's of Eastam and Westam sandwich.  

She was a lonely little girl with only a few dozen close friends

A smattering of fiends 

And a fair number of acquaintances

Including, but not limited to, imaginary friends and ghosts. 

Close to the solstice time, when the day became short and the night was like long pants you stepped on when you walked,

Akira became lonely. 

All my fiends can go to Reykjavik (being the closest thing to hell on Earth she could think of)

All I want is some visitors to share this holy day with me

But alas, Akira was alone. 

Suddenly, a slow scraping noise was heard. 

Across the floor slid a butter knife. 

An ordinary, butter knife. 

Just as slowly a steak knife flew through the air and stuck in the wall. 

One by one, all the knifes in the house slid, flew, rolled or otherwise appeared

In the room with Akira. 

This is great said Akira, slicing her finger on a butcher knife. 

Now I am no longer alone. 

I have all these sharp knives to spend the holy day with. 

Every year after that, Akira washed and dried all the knives. 

She cleaned the silver ones, and laid the rest out. 

And none of her other fiends or acquaintances ever darkened her door on Solstice again. 

Get out...

A couple years ago I got up every morning and ran, biked, hiked or just walked and looked around every morning. Years before that I would feed the animals, garden, or have coffee watching wild geese. 

But a couple years ago I got sick and it was too hard to drag myself out of bed in the morning. I needed sleep. I really did. And that was OK and good.

But this morning, I walked out, as I have been for a while, and noticed how beautiful the world can be. I had missed being out. 

A few years (alright-many years) ago I prided myself on thinking radically and letting my mind wander. I meditated, did yoga, played music. 

But then I became focused on work, financial security and rest of the "faulty plan".  I stayed inside the box in my mind. This was less OK, but I can rationalize it as necessary. 

But recently I realized had imprisoned my mind in a box that didn't allow for other ways of thinking. I opened my mind and saw different ways of thinking about things. And I could accept and appreciate those ideas again. 

A few years ago (true confession-maybe never) I was brave and courageous to step out of my comfort zone. To meet new people from different cultures, to meet people if different faiths and with different backgrounds.  To consider, try out and adopt some new actions which better fit my life. 

But then I fell into complacency.  It was easier to join groups and hang out with people like me. Even when my wife and I adopted transracially, we sought out other couples with transracially adopted kids. It was just easier. But more importantly, that ease took up all of my energy and did not allow for other experiences and life. And that was not OK. 

So a few years ago (true again) I started CHOOSING to partake in things that were outside my comfort zone. Slowly at first. Talking to people you didn't know.  A running club. Different church groups. Rock climbing. Small steps, but steps. And it was nice. 

This has spread to other areas of my life. Doing some social justice things like food pantry donations or Christmas donations. Making the people at work give to Toys for Tots instead of Christmas gifts. I. have helped with soup kitchens.  I have tried to accept and help with larger social issues like horizontal drilling and climate change. 

But it all started with getting out of the house, the apartment, the trailer, the tent or whatever nest I was in. 

My journey has been long. It has been right for me. May yours be right for you. Just take the journey. 


Sent from my iPhone