All I really need to know I learned from bumper stickers and Patch Adams
God bless the people of every nation
Stop continental drift
If you love ’em, hug ’em
Save the world—win valuable prizes
Eracism
Insatiable is not sustainable
Kill your television
Love your mother
Friends don’t let friends drink Starbucks
I was sitting in the audience at Rolling Thunder at the Asheville Civic Center a couple of weeks ago listening to Patch Adams—medical doctor, clown, social activist, and founder and director of the Gesundheit Institute, a holistic medical community that provides free medical care. Patch talked about the intention he had set in place at the age of eighteen to never have a bad day. He talked about going to hospitals in war zones to entertain kids and help them forget, if only for a few moments, their excruciating pain. But the statement that really startled me back to consciousness came near the end of Patch’s talk, when he spoke of the element that was truly essential in any effort to create a better world—love, a concept so simple yet sometimes so challenging.
At that moment I realized how love had gone AWOL in my life. I had been driven, intense, and extremely focused in getting stuff done—in my job as director of communications for a nonprofit healthcare organization, in completing my book, in writing this column every other week, and in helping to publicize Rolling Thunder. My free time had dwindled to Sunday only, sometimes just Sunday mornings. And it was on the Sunday morning after Rolling Thunder that I got a greater sense of how tightly I was wound and how I’d lost the connection with the best part of myself. True, I’d gotten a lot of my assigned tasks completed and done well over the past few weeks through hard work, long hours and copious doses of caffeine. But at what cost to my physical, emotional, and spiritual well being? As Howard Hanger, minister of celebration at Jubilee! Community Church, led us in the weekly ritual of song, prayer, meditation and opening to the four directions, the cost suddenly became clear. And as tears ran down my face, I felt reconnected to my spirit. I could sense the mystery again. My agitated mind was at rest for the first time in weeks, if not months.
Finally, a few days later, it was time for Lake Eden Arts Festival, a weekend of entertainment, activities, and leisure held each spring and fall at Camp Rockmont in Black Mountain. From the moment we arrived and my wife, Shonnie, and I set up our tent in the open pasture surrounded by the mountains, I could feel the tension melting away. No TV, no phone, no doorbell, no place to be, nothing to do. A time for “being,” not for “doing.”
Giving it all you’ve got, putting 100 percent of yourself into any effort—volunteer, relationship, job or recreation—is a noble endeavor. Yet, if we forget to nurture ourselves with rest and healthy food and supportive companionship, if we fail to recharge our batteries regularly, we risk burnout, frustration, and fatigue. Plus it’s just not much fun. By putting my head down, shutting out the world and bulling ahead, I can get a lot done. But when I do it this way it’s simply drudgery, and I likely miss the enjoyment of the experience and the fulfillment of a job well done.
Each Saturday and Sunday morning at LEAF Shonnie and I lead a trail run for runners of all levels—beginner to advanced. On this particular Saturday a group of around eight headed up the mountain trail, Shonnie in the lead, me hanging back with the runners of a slower pace. We were certainly “doing” something; but my energy was different. I was connected and relaxed, naturally present with the other runners rather than thinking about reaching a specific destination or getting there within a certain time. In about a half-hour, we came to a large rock outcropping where we stopped, shared snacks, talked about who we were and where we came from, and got to know each other at a deeper level. Connections, gratitude, and (thank you, Patch) love made visible.
Saturday, May 17th, 2003No Comments »
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