I think that unmoored feeling you so eloquently describe is that shock to the system we feel when it breaks up routine, physical or mental. Routine takes away some of the uncertainties in life and our brain hates uncertainty. I’ve felt it a few times in my career when a patient takes a turn for the worse when I expect them to get better. It makes you question if you know anything at all. Anyway, so great to see you at Vamp the other night. That’s one routine I hope you’ll re-establish.
have been reading books again, marveling at how they seem to be talking with one another and to me. - Me, too. It may be hiding from the world before the next move becomes clear, but what a wonderful immersion it is -
I have never lived alone. My grandfather pointed me in the direction of my first job (as a trainee animal technician) when I was 15, after which it has been serendipity all the way (I.e. one thing led to another). As for a sentence this week. From the end of ‘How It All Began’ by Penelope Lively, one of my favourite authors. ‘Stella tried hard not to go off the rails so often, and managed with just the occasional wobbly.’ 🐰 Sadly, she has yet to write ‘More of Stella’s Adventures with Other Men.’
My first year of high school left me deeply unsatisfied. The classes, other than English, were tedious and seemed pointless; I couldn't imagine tolerating two more years of it. Turning 16, I took the California High school equivalency exam in order to graduate. Then I applied to a local college with a school of performing arts, auditioned, and was accepted on scholarship. Off I went, turning at a crossroad, and my first life goal was met. Oh, the places we go!
With years under my belt I have realized that there are multiple roads one can take that will lead you to an interesting life, and that you can always take another route, even a u-turn, and still enrich your life with colorful individuals and experiences.
At 17 I enlisted, in an attempt to avoid Vietnam and to escape my small community that was close-minded. That road lead to Germany and Europe and an open mind of discovery.
At 22 I abandoned college, walked off the Westminster College campus and took a flight to CA, where I got a job cleaning the big john in a Casino, but lead to discovery of myself and others.
At 30 I left a government job and flew to Mexico City holding a stack of Spanish vocabulary cards and no prospects for a job in a foreign country. It lead to marvelous discoveries.
We are offered many roads and many routes to take in our lives and they ALL offer discovery; it's up to us to make them work, and I believe forks in the road offer options, not bad choices.
“I found myself a bit lost without obstacles to confront.” WOW!
I think that unmoored feeling you so eloquently describe is that shock to the system we feel when it breaks up routine, physical or mental. Routine takes away some of the uncertainties in life and our brain hates uncertainty. I’ve felt it a few times in my career when a patient takes a turn for the worse when I expect them to get better. It makes you question if you know anything at all. Anyway, so great to see you at Vamp the other night. That’s one routine I hope you’ll re-establish.
I’m in that beautifully described state right now and have no idea how it will shift.
Hey, thanks for the shout-out! The comments to that post are amazing.
have been reading books again, marveling at how they seem to be talking with one another and to me. - Me, too. It may be hiding from the world before the next move becomes clear, but what a wonderful immersion it is -
I have never lived alone. My grandfather pointed me in the direction of my first job (as a trainee animal technician) when I was 15, after which it has been serendipity all the way (I.e. one thing led to another). As for a sentence this week. From the end of ‘How It All Began’ by Penelope Lively, one of my favourite authors. ‘Stella tried hard not to go off the rails so often, and managed with just the occasional wobbly.’ 🐰 Sadly, she has yet to write ‘More of Stella’s Adventures with Other Men.’
My first year of high school left me deeply unsatisfied. The classes, other than English, were tedious and seemed pointless; I couldn't imagine tolerating two more years of it. Turning 16, I took the California High school equivalency exam in order to graduate. Then I applied to a local college with a school of performing arts, auditioned, and was accepted on scholarship. Off I went, turning at a crossroad, and my first life goal was met. Oh, the places we go!
With years under my belt I have realized that there are multiple roads one can take that will lead you to an interesting life, and that you can always take another route, even a u-turn, and still enrich your life with colorful individuals and experiences.
At 17 I enlisted, in an attempt to avoid Vietnam and to escape my small community that was close-minded. That road lead to Germany and Europe and an open mind of discovery.
At 22 I abandoned college, walked off the Westminster College campus and took a flight to CA, where I got a job cleaning the big john in a Casino, but lead to discovery of myself and others.
At 30 I left a government job and flew to Mexico City holding a stack of Spanish vocabulary cards and no prospects for a job in a foreign country. It lead to marvelous discoveries.
We are offered many roads and many routes to take in our lives and they ALL offer discovery; it's up to us to make them work, and I believe forks in the road offer options, not bad choices.