I've been feeling rather enervated lately, not much 'joie de vivre'. Part of the problem is due to what I consider one of my core strengths - I'm a proverbial bull. Nothing stops me, even if it takes a lifetime of slog. This ability for long term endurance has often taken me where I want to go but it also drives me to create Sisyphean tasks which require endless repetition without much thought or joy as this bull just plows on, figuring sooner or later all will fall before my endless reserves of will and strength - oh Hercules, eat your heart out! This mental flagellation drives me to create self made schedules, deadlines, blogging/composing/recording/producing/mixing/mastering on a daily basis . . . starting to get the picture? Not much relief or lightness here.
So how do I find a breath of fresh air???
I ask my son's friend to bring her African lovebird - Columbine - over to my house for a visit. We met (Columbine and I) about two weeks ago. When released from her box, she jumped on my finger and used her beak and claws to climb up my sleeve. She then took refuge on my shoulder and spoke to me, nestled in my neck, fell asleep and eventually shat . . . right down my back. We communed blissfully for almost an hour, both of us relaxed and captivated with each other. Eventually Columbine was tempted away by food and I returned to the 'mixing' I'd been doing before she arrived but within five minutes she began shrieking for me (I was now in another room). I felt thoroughly needed and loved.
If anyone reading this understands (about the effects of a puritan work ethic gone amok) then I highly recommend searching for and meeting a small creature to make friends with - it's been a lifesaver for me!
ps: my lovely, grumpy older cat was not as thrilled and bemused as I was by Columbine. D
