Reflections from the Red Kayak
Greetings from the Red Kayak! It is amazing how quickly time passes and how long it has been since I have sent out a reflection. My life has been flowing in wonderful, adventurous directions this summer which has left little time to write. Now that I am spending more time kayaking, I am feeling the flow of words beginning to emerge. Feels a little rusty, but here we go!
So, what is Panta Rhei, (pronounced pän-ˌtä-ˈrā)? Translated as “everything flows,” this saying is one of the most famous philosophical quotes attributed to the Greek Philosopher Heraclitus. He taught that the universe is in a constant state of becoming and change.
I love the word FLOW. To me, it signals an opening, a way to keep everything moving in my life. It reminds me not to stay stagnant, and also to appreciate and embrace the changes in life around me.
I have some favorite podcasts. Two of them are by speakers who have a word that seems to be a trademark for their work. VULNERABILITY, is often attributed to Brene’ Brown. Her 2010 TED talk on “the power of vulnerability” is one of the most viewed talks in the world.
The other speaker I frequently listen to is Tara Brach, who embraces radical compassion and uses the word RAIN as a mnemonic for her teachings. R-RECOGNIZE what is happening, A-ALLOW life to be just as it is, I-INVESTIGATE with a gentle, curious attention and N-NURTURE with loving presence.
So on this morning’s paddle out into the dense fog, I decide, I want a word! I choose FLOW. Perfect in my mind for what river paddling is about. Everything flows. Panta Rhei.
F– it could stand for the Fog I am paddling in, but the better word is FORGET. The first breath of ahhhh that I take when I push off from shore helps me to release and let go of everything on land. Whatever is currently happening in my life I leave on the shore. Consciously making the decision to do this frees my mind from land limitations and lets my thoughts FLOW.
L-LISTEN to the sounds of nature. As I leave shore in my little red kayak, the twang of the green frogs and the low, guttural sounds of the bull frogs greet me. I hear a rustle, then a splash along the shore. As a wisp of fog drifts by, a white-tailed deer emerges, barely visible. She is munching on leaves of a tree along the riverbank. Breakfast! And then she crosses the river. Most importantly, I LISTEN to the utter silence. I feel that I am experiencing the great silence that Sigurd F. Olson writes about in Reflections from the North Country. He writes, “The great silences mean more than stillness. They are the ancient overpowering silences this planet knew before the advent of modern man.” I bask in its welcoming embrace.
O-OBSERVE the sights around me. Further up river, snorting sounds echo on the opposite river bank – the frisky river otter! There must be a dozen or so, popping their heads out of the water, OBSERVING, and then back under. Like playful periscopes! I take my cue from these high-spirited teachers. As I paddle in to a small section of dew-dripped lily pads and purple, pickerel weeds to eat my protein bar, I sit and OBSERVE. Suddenly, I hear the fwip-fwap sound of flapping bird’s wings. Not just any bird, but the great blue heron, who alights from the shore, lifting with the fog in its prehistoric pose.
W-WILLING I hear the haunting wail of the loon in the distance. The wail is the call that loons give back and forth to figure out each other’s location, according to The Cornell Lab of Ornithology. It indicates a WILLINGNESS to interact. From my time of Forgetting, Listening and Observing on the water, I must then be WILLING to take what I have learned from my time on the river, and bring it back to my life.
What did the frogs, the deer, the otter, the heron and the loon teach me this morning? This menagerie of river life reminded me of the ever-flowing stream of life. To continue to embrace and accept the changes and glide with the currents.
Everything is moving, evolving, emerging. A river is always changing, always in flux, just as we are. Heraclitus also had another famous saying, “You cannot step into the same river twice. Each time it is different, and so are you.”
Panta Rhei. Everything flows.
What do you need to FORGET, to open your mind and heart to the new?
How can you do a better job of LISTENING and OBSERVING to uncover what lies under the surface?
What are you WILLING to do today, to open the FLOW in your life?
www.redkayak.net
It is so great to hear from you, SMRZ! I’m on my way this week to Kosovo, to explore additional opportunites to grow my business. Your timing is spot on!
I miss you, but am so very happy for you.
Awesome reflection. . . We all should keep flowing to our future. Being truly “in the moment” makes flowing enjoyable 💗
Thank you!
What a beautiful reflection and reminder to slow down and breathe in nature, taking in the wonder of it all. Reading this in the middle of a busy day helped ground me while increasing my awareness of life. Thanks, Mary Anne!
Well hello Mary Anne!! So happy to hear from you, sounds like all is going well for you and now some time to relax and reflect. I must take your advice to slow down and breathe, observe, listen!!
Take care
Nina
Hey Mar.
Another great writing by you keep them coming.
Hope all is well with you.
Have super great Holidays…
poor old larry