Yes. Yes. Yes. Those beautiful moments when the inspiration arrives unencumbered by the thinking logical left brain. You have to grab them!! That's what is so hard when you are immersed in life's to do's and necessities around family and home and work. How to carve out the sacred space is the daily question.
I love Anne Lamott's quote: "My mind is my main problem almost all the time. I wish I could leave it in the fridge when I go out but it wants to come with me." 😊🙏
Well said and so true! Thats why I am begging the angel to stay with me as an accountability and awe partner in the dance everyday. Thanks for reading Jo and all of the support 🙏❤️
Indeed. Iain McG talks about what 'grabs' the attention. That is what the LH / right hand must do, but busy LH tends to miss what the wider world might be trying to tell it ... angels, trees or whoever.
Yes to poetry and metaphor being the bridge we can create to find meaning. Your poem is a lovely jumping-off point to your blog. Love this: "Begging the angel | to write us as a poem | before logic arrives | to change her mind." And "As a poem we meet her as one traversing and crossing the gap between realms to enter into a union with the metaphor as love." And "But to live in it, we also need to belong to the world and to understand the complexity of what it is we are dealing with." Do poetry and metaphor speak to and through the heart and soul, but only when the mind allows their language to emerge?? Thanks for cuoreosity and sharing your insights!
I certainly accord with the beginning quote by Iain McGilchrist; I'm a fan of incarnated spirituality - I think that's why we're here on this planet. Nature and matter can be sacralised, or desacralised. Our job is to cultivate the former, whilst living in a time when an increasingly technologised culture is pushing in the opposite direction.
"Where the skin of matter
reaches out for a deeper embrace
with the spirit of consciousness" ...
... you can feel the yearning of the body to become more 'enspirited' (enspiritised'?) ... animated by spirit.
Thanks Josh! I totally resonate. I always get confused on the differences of Animism and Panentheism yet they loudly call my name. I appreciate you reading and reaching out 🙏❤️
Lol! Lets meet up. I bagged my first and as I sat there after my 3.5 hr marathon up from sea level to 3000 feet, this guy comes over the top playing the pipes as it was his 282nd and final bagging! The Talkisker flowed at the top which became a party. My already wobbly legs became an interesting dance party on the 3 hour scramble back down! Lets talk soon. 🙏❤️
Yes - that Universal hand opens up a crack to reveal a glimpse … beautiful poetry is a way of pushing the crack wider to see more without needing understanding or explanation. I’m reading Ann Wroe ‘Lifescapes A biographers search for the soul’. I think you’d like it.❤️
This is a great summary of such big ideas. Thank you for this. You helped me organize what I was reading yesterday so I could better understand it. I intuitively (not through research) reinterpreted this passage about the brain, recognizing that it functions on both feminine and masculine energy. Feminine energy provides a sense of belonging, whereas masculine energy aims to deal. Although they are different, their similarities bind them together for the same purpose, much like the way the brain functions. "But to live in it, we also need to belong to the world and understand the complexity of what it is we are dealing with."
Thanks Katerina! I totally agree, and would like to hear more about that. Is the masculine energy more related to the left hemisphere and the feminine to the right?
I agree with Philip's statement below that it is possible to misidentify or divide the brain based on gender identification; I refer to the experience of energy given and directed in how we utilize the brain. The energy type is not gender-related; rather, it is an archetype of "being" or "doing". And, if I have to draw a parallel with the brain, perhaps our focus on a map of a mountain, say, using the left brain, means that we use more of our energy in a masculine way, and when we want to see the mountain itself, we are in our relaxation, creation mode, which can be interpreted archetypally as the feminine "being". We can do and be at the same time, so depending on our level of awareness, we can utilize and switch, shift, and create the mood we desire by combining both energies, regardless of our gender. :)
I have listened to Iain McGilchrist quite a bit, but not yet started on the mountain of the book. 😊 He has talked about possible misidentification of brain function with male / female identity.
My thought FWIW is that we live in a culture historically dominated by men, but that ‘status’ hierarchies exist for both the twin male and female social structures we have inherited. And we are highly social animals.
But here is Iain McGilchrist … direct quotes I think from talks he has given …
- “To put it very simply: I think it's certainly not true that the right hemisphere is somehow female, and the left hemisphere male.
- “The right hemisphere has by far the preponderance of emotional understanding.
- “I had gone into the conversation quite cowed because we live in a left hemispheric world, and these were two left hemispheric men.
I love this; it’s so interesting the way you describe the two brain halves and our need for both… yet that left one can be such a bully. Beautiful writing, Jaime, thank you ❤️
Beautiful! We need to feel our way through life as opposed to think. With an open heArt and sharpened senses. Thanks so much for your incredibly soul tickling writings!
I don't know why but as I was reading your wonderfully thoughtful piece Jamie, I thought of what C.S. Lewis said, “It is a good rule after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between.”
This is so good, Jamie and my brain is vibrating in agreement. When I was engulfed in the world of engineering, it was all left brain, with no allowance made for the right hemisphere. I knew after 10 years that I could not continue to live this way as a human being. Or I would be a zombie.
So I Ieft engineering for writing, thus allowing the right hemisphere to participate in the discussion of my life. Thus, I began to feel more balanced, although I still feel out of touch at times. But for different reasons that have everything to do with a society that primarily values function.
I want to add a small note about Religion, and I am treading in dangerous territory here. But allow me to say this. Religion has become focused more of late on the left hemisphre way of thinking and less on the right hemisphere. Hence, less wonder awe and connections made.
Thanks Perry! I totally resonate and I agree on the religious part of that comment as well. Once something becomes dogma, it in some way loses the initial message. I think there is some thing common to all religions, that once uncovered will open up that right brain again. I think there’s more and more of us out there that are inviting that in. With that ripple, maybe we can change the world. It’s the only way it’s ever happened. Bless you Perry. Thank you so much for reading and being here. 🙏❤️
Thanks Shelly! Poetry and metaphor are a bridge to heart/soul that get around that gate keeping police officer in the mind before it slams the door shut.
Meaning arrives from engagement with the heart and soul of the world more so than from the abstract contemplation of it.
Next week I’ll live into the question “What are poets’s for?”
»Evanescence« sounds like the cosmos has come knocking and found you, offering a glimpse of being. 💕🙏
Thanks Veronika! As soon as I realize what’s happening, I’ve already lost the glimpse lol! Looking forward to my noctarine training! 🙏❤️
"Begging the angel
to write us as a poem
before logic arrives
to change her mind"
Yes. Yes. Yes. Those beautiful moments when the inspiration arrives unencumbered by the thinking logical left brain. You have to grab them!! That's what is so hard when you are immersed in life's to do's and necessities around family and home and work. How to carve out the sacred space is the daily question.
I love Anne Lamott's quote: "My mind is my main problem almost all the time. I wish I could leave it in the fridge when I go out but it wants to come with me." 😊🙏
Well said and so true! Thats why I am begging the angel to stay with me as an accountability and awe partner in the dance everyday. Thanks for reading Jo and all of the support 🙏❤️
Indeed. Iain McG talks about what 'grabs' the attention. That is what the LH / right hand must do, but busy LH tends to miss what the wider world might be trying to tell it ... angels, trees or whoever.
Beautifully said and resonates 🙏❤️
Yes to poetry and metaphor being the bridge we can create to find meaning. Your poem is a lovely jumping-off point to your blog. Love this: "Begging the angel | to write us as a poem | before logic arrives | to change her mind." And "As a poem we meet her as one traversing and crossing the gap between realms to enter into a union with the metaphor as love." And "But to live in it, we also need to belong to the world and to understand the complexity of what it is we are dealing with." Do poetry and metaphor speak to and through the heart and soul, but only when the mind allows their language to emerge?? Thanks for cuoreosity and sharing your insights!
I certainly accord with the beginning quote by Iain McGilchrist; I'm a fan of incarnated spirituality - I think that's why we're here on this planet. Nature and matter can be sacralised, or desacralised. Our job is to cultivate the former, whilst living in a time when an increasingly technologised culture is pushing in the opposite direction.
"Where the skin of matter
reaches out for a deeper embrace
with the spirit of consciousness" ...
... you can feel the yearning of the body to become more 'enspirited' (enspiritised'?) ... animated by spirit.
Thanks Josh! I totally resonate. I always get confused on the differences of Animism and Panentheism yet they loudly call my name. I appreciate you reading and reaching out 🙏❤️
Great poem Jamie. Will follow you up the McGilchrist mountain - like doing all the Scottish 'Munroes'!😊👍
Lol! Lets meet up. I bagged my first and as I sat there after my 3.5 hr marathon up from sea level to 3000 feet, this guy comes over the top playing the pipes as it was his 282nd and final bagging! The Talkisker flowed at the top which became a party. My already wobbly legs became an interesting dance party on the 3 hour scramble back down! Lets talk soon. 🙏❤️
We'll get there. Last time I did one was like that and I had to manage quite a bit on the way down on the seat of my pants.
Slid a bit on the skree too!
Talisker lol
Yes - that Universal hand opens up a crack to reveal a glimpse … beautiful poetry is a way of pushing the crack wider to see more without needing understanding or explanation. I’m reading Ann Wroe ‘Lifescapes A biographers search for the soul’. I think you’d like it.❤️
Alice Thank You! Cracked wide open as a poem indeed. Thank you so much for that book I will check it out. 🙏❤️
This is a great summary of such big ideas. Thank you for this. You helped me organize what I was reading yesterday so I could better understand it. I intuitively (not through research) reinterpreted this passage about the brain, recognizing that it functions on both feminine and masculine energy. Feminine energy provides a sense of belonging, whereas masculine energy aims to deal. Although they are different, their similarities bind them together for the same purpose, much like the way the brain functions. "But to live in it, we also need to belong to the world and understand the complexity of what it is we are dealing with."
Thanks Katerina! I totally agree, and would like to hear more about that. Is the masculine energy more related to the left hemisphere and the feminine to the right?
I agree with Philip's statement below that it is possible to misidentify or divide the brain based on gender identification; I refer to the experience of energy given and directed in how we utilize the brain. The energy type is not gender-related; rather, it is an archetype of "being" or "doing". And, if I have to draw a parallel with the brain, perhaps our focus on a map of a mountain, say, using the left brain, means that we use more of our energy in a masculine way, and when we want to see the mountain itself, we are in our relaxation, creation mode, which can be interpreted archetypally as the feminine "being". We can do and be at the same time, so depending on our level of awareness, we can utilize and switch, shift, and create the mood we desire by combining both energies, regardless of our gender. :)
I love this Katerina! I look forward to reading your thoughts more. 🙏❤️
I have listened to Iain McGilchrist quite a bit, but not yet started on the mountain of the book. 😊 He has talked about possible misidentification of brain function with male / female identity.
My thought FWIW is that we live in a culture historically dominated by men, but that ‘status’ hierarchies exist for both the twin male and female social structures we have inherited. And we are highly social animals.
But here is Iain McGilchrist … direct quotes I think from talks he has given …
- “To put it very simply: I think it's certainly not true that the right hemisphere is somehow female, and the left hemisphere male.
- “The right hemisphere has by far the preponderance of emotional understanding.
- “I had gone into the conversation quite cowed because we live in a left hemispheric world, and these were two left hemispheric men.
Thanks Phillip. Funny how labels just don’t fit here. We are everything and nothing all at the same time. Layers to unfold. 🙏❤️
I love this; it’s so interesting the way you describe the two brain halves and our need for both… yet that left one can be such a bully. Beautiful writing, Jaime, thank you ❤️
Thanks Jenn! Appreciate you 🙏❤️
You are welcome!
By the way, that's why I am also a big fan of the infinity sign, drawing it connects the right and left brain. A fun and meditative exercise.
Nice ♾️❤️
Beautiful! We need to feel our way through life as opposed to think. With an open heArt and sharpened senses. Thanks so much for your incredibly soul tickling writings!
Thanks so much Sadhbh! I resonate with attention to perception indeed. Thanks for reading and for all of your support. 🙏❤️
Mind of mine, I love it and I take gentle good care of me mind
Thanks Geraldine! I love that little diddy! Thanks for reading and your kindness 🙏❤️
Quite the art work, Sir Jamie, impactful, it even happens to our faces, get that.
The face of Earth the face of me
mine aren’t that deep yet teehee
My hiphop diddy!
Love your work and I believe in your mission! Happy trails, Geraldine
Great poem and post! Love how your writing is making us use both hemispheres…the poetry and the prescriptive prose! Thanks Jamie
Thanks so much Mo! Definitely trying to tap into the mystery! Bless you 🙏❤️
I don't know why but as I was reading your wonderfully thoughtful piece Jamie, I thought of what C.S. Lewis said, “It is a good rule after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between.”
Also, I love your poem. Thank you for this. ox
Thank you so much as always Deb! Thank you for re-posting and for seeing and being in the spaces between the words. Bless you 🙏❤️
I love all the spaces between the lines. That’s what we’re here for :). Bless you as well Jamie and have a peaceful week ahead. ox
This is so good, Jamie and my brain is vibrating in agreement. When I was engulfed in the world of engineering, it was all left brain, with no allowance made for the right hemisphere. I knew after 10 years that I could not continue to live this way as a human being. Or I would be a zombie.
So I Ieft engineering for writing, thus allowing the right hemisphere to participate in the discussion of my life. Thus, I began to feel more balanced, although I still feel out of touch at times. But for different reasons that have everything to do with a society that primarily values function.
I want to add a small note about Religion, and I am treading in dangerous territory here. But allow me to say this. Religion has become focused more of late on the left hemisphre way of thinking and less on the right hemisphere. Hence, less wonder awe and connections made.
Thanks Perry! I totally resonate and I agree on the religious part of that comment as well. Once something becomes dogma, it in some way loses the initial message. I think there is some thing common to all religions, that once uncovered will open up that right brain again. I think there’s more and more of us out there that are inviting that in. With that ripple, maybe we can change the world. It’s the only way it’s ever happened. Bless you Perry. Thank you so much for reading and being here. 🙏❤️
Thanks Shelly! Poetry and metaphor are a bridge to heart/soul that get around that gate keeping police officer in the mind before it slams the door shut.
Meaning arrives from engagement with the heart and soul of the world more so than from the abstract contemplation of it.
Next week I’ll live into the question “What are poets’s for?”
I appreciate your insights! Bless you 🙏❤️