May I Be Free
It's May. Happy May!It the last month of my thirties. On May 30th, I'll turn 40. No big deal. Instead of going to Machu Picchu, I'll most likely be right here at home. Our trip is officially canceled. Postponed until... who knows?Lockdown continues. Phase 2 in which we all get used to this, in which what was weird at first becomes normalized. Phase 3 is the wild card: will the powerful leech more power or will we the people realize our power and revolt. Revolt precedes revolution evolution. (I am revolting, ha!) Everything is politics. Except nature. Nature is a fierce force beyond, above and below, greater than politics.Bringing it back down to the personal level, what can I do with this new moment, hour, day, and month? How can I shape my time to be more full of things that bring my joy (nature! writing and reading! watching documentaries, walking, hanging out with my family, etc.) and let go of the things that are toxic.For me, Facebook feels toxic. It has for quite a while, but I'll admit it; I'm addicted. I, therefore, am setting the intention of not logging into Facebook during this month of May. It's an experiment in how much better my days will be without unnecessarily scrolling through a "news feed" full of too much information. My hypothesis is that it will bring on the inspiration for a longer "social media fast" upon which I will embark.I'm taking it waaay back to 2004, y'all. Back to email communications and face-to-face conversations. Cutting away the need to share links and photos, memes or personal news with hundreds of virtual "friends". I recognize that it gives me a dopamine lift and that's why I do it. It's nice to be "liked" and read comments. It gives a sense of instant gratification, of recognition. Of what, though?The bottom-line question is: What is essential?Facebook is not essential to my life. With the time I would've spent scrolling through that shit, I will instead Read Actual Books, practice yoga and pranayama (breathing), write (journaling, blogging), work (editing, writing, proofreading, translating) and play (draw, paint, color, sing, dance, cook, get silly). And Most of All Leave Time Free and Open to Do Nothing or Whatever Suits Me in that Moment.What is essential?LoveWhat else is essential?Air. Water. Food. Shelter. Comfort. Safety. Growth. Change.Fresh air, pure flowing water, healthy local fresh food, comfort but also stretching beyond our comfort zone, aligning with the reality that change is always happening. Growing naturally, intuitively, living from the heart.These are my intentions for today and for May.May I/we/all beings be safe, happy, healthy and free.