This is what I love about my life, currently, and I don’t know why this phenomenon is occurring, but I don’t question it, either. This run of synchronicity, which I’ve always treasured in its randomness now comes in floods at moments.
But just now I’ve stumbled across this passage from a book of which I was totally unaware, brought to me by a friend who comes to me every Sunday just as you do. And it relates so well to this point of how and why we fall in love with places, I think. I also felt this the first time I visited Yosemite:
“This is true for everyone, wherever we are: what we see is the preface to what we can see. Beyond that preface, with work and love, is what we can come to understand. If we can understand, then we can live. In the Sierra, we understood that we might, after all, belong here with tree and rock and time and light. We might, for a brief spell of years, have the luck to find a home here by following the beauty that beckons us.
“In most cultures, in every century, beauty is bound up with unity. Beauty illuminates the affinity, the inner relation, the resemblance, the kinship, the concord and identity of things. We are all trained to tell things apart. In the experience of beauty, we learn to tell things alike; to move from the darkness of oneself to a sympathy, an open rapport; a longed — for, conscious union with the world. Beauty is a lucid and graceful assembly of forms that calls the mind close to life, our bodies close to the earth, and all of us closer to one another...
“There is nothing more powerful than the movement toward beauty. As we walked, this thought sustained us. What we needed was to keep moving: one more day, and in each day, all day, one more step. It struck me as the simplest rule of life and of reflection: keep moving. Stay in readiness. Cultivate openness, clarity, affection, an easygoing revelry of the senses, a trust in our luck that we are here on earth at all, that we have this moment at all. Movement along a trail is movement within the mind. In the long run, the revelation of beauty is not a matter of chance: it is the centermost surety in life.”—Steven Nightingale.
Something about mid-Spring... I cannot tell you what a joy it is to have found you.
This happened to me once, as well, so yes, I know the feeling, and empathize entirely, perhaps more than you can know. I visited San Francisco (which, I believe, is even a further distance from New York than the Netherlands is from Switzerland) and fell in love from the view out the airplane window (I’d been reading Joseph Campbell and I think that had an effect). But something deeper had been planted earlier. Another story for another time.
If I ever saw a VD license plate I would turn and run in the opposite direction, sorry.
Awww, thank you Alan. What a lovely thing to hear.
Not sure if I should tell you that I lived in the Bay Area in the 90s. It was my gap year before university. I LOVED it. Yes, definitely further from New York than Switzerland is from the Netherlands.
I was debating on whether I should mention the VD license plates, but I couldn't - not ;-)
Wonderful vacation story. It is fabulous to find a place that feels so much like the home you want. And may return to! I was lucky to spend 10 exquisite years in the perfect apartment for me with woods, a lake, a view, layout that was superb. In the state of AL. My home. Then. Thank you for this. Happy Sunday! 😘
It was a pkeasure to show you this. Next time we can try to ask for a tour at one of those windmills.
Yay! I'd love that. I'll ask in Dutch ;-) And thanks again for everything.
This is what I love about my life, currently, and I don’t know why this phenomenon is occurring, but I don’t question it, either. This run of synchronicity, which I’ve always treasured in its randomness now comes in floods at moments.
But just now I’ve stumbled across this passage from a book of which I was totally unaware, brought to me by a friend who comes to me every Sunday just as you do. And it relates so well to this point of how and why we fall in love with places, I think. I also felt this the first time I visited Yosemite:
“This is true for everyone, wherever we are: what we see is the preface to what we can see. Beyond that preface, with work and love, is what we can come to understand. If we can understand, then we can live. In the Sierra, we understood that we might, after all, belong here with tree and rock and time and light. We might, for a brief spell of years, have the luck to find a home here by following the beauty that beckons us.
“In most cultures, in every century, beauty is bound up with unity. Beauty illuminates the affinity, the inner relation, the resemblance, the kinship, the concord and identity of things. We are all trained to tell things apart. In the experience of beauty, we learn to tell things alike; to move from the darkness of oneself to a sympathy, an open rapport; a longed — for, conscious union with the world. Beauty is a lucid and graceful assembly of forms that calls the mind close to life, our bodies close to the earth, and all of us closer to one another...
“There is nothing more powerful than the movement toward beauty. As we walked, this thought sustained us. What we needed was to keep moving: one more day, and in each day, all day, one more step. It struck me as the simplest rule of life and of reflection: keep moving. Stay in readiness. Cultivate openness, clarity, affection, an easygoing revelry of the senses, a trust in our luck that we are here on earth at all, that we have this moment at all. Movement along a trail is movement within the mind. In the long run, the revelation of beauty is not a matter of chance: it is the centermost surety in life.”—Steven Nightingale.
How lovely, thank you for sharing and making that connection.
These things just keep falling out of the ether lately... It's pure Jung.
That's glorious
Do you think? I thought it captured nearly everything. 💑
Something about mid-Spring... I cannot tell you what a joy it is to have found you.
This happened to me once, as well, so yes, I know the feeling, and empathize entirely, perhaps more than you can know. I visited San Francisco (which, I believe, is even a further distance from New York than the Netherlands is from Switzerland) and fell in love from the view out the airplane window (I’d been reading Joseph Campbell and I think that had an effect). But something deeper had been planted earlier. Another story for another time.
If I ever saw a VD license plate I would turn and run in the opposite direction, sorry.
😍 😘
Awww, thank you Alan. What a lovely thing to hear.
Not sure if I should tell you that I lived in the Bay Area in the 90s. It was my gap year before university. I LOVED it. Yes, definitely further from New York than Switzerland is from the Netherlands.
I was debating on whether I should mention the VD license plates, but I couldn't - not ;-)
Of COURSE you should... ALWAYS!!!
Beautiful sunrise images!!!!
Thank you. I loved being out there in the freezing cold. And only once did I see somebody else. We had a moment as she gave me a knowing nod ;-)
What a wonderful journey! Fascinating Molenviergang site. Happy Sunday!!
Thanks! Yes, those mills are something else.
Wonderful vacation story. It is fabulous to find a place that feels so much like the home you want. And may return to! I was lucky to spend 10 exquisite years in the perfect apartment for me with woods, a lake, a view, layout that was superb. In the state of AL. My home. Then. Thank you for this. Happy Sunday! 😘
Glad you liked it Judith. That sounds like a great place to live. Hugs.