(For anyone whose soul is needing a beautiful view)
I feel lucky to have views from our home and my office - views feed my soul. Still, there are times, I need to go out into the world of strip malls, signage and other dreck that careless urban planning has left in its wake. I used to write a blog called "A World With a View,” about how our internal life is manifested in the physical spaces we create and how our spaces in turn impact our inner world. By spaces, I mean our rooms, work spaces homes, streets-capes, towns, cities, etc. For me, beautiful design is simple and to the best it can respects the natural world including the people in it. Though I'm lucky not to live in a war zone, I do live in a country where consumption and convenience is valued over the rest of the human experience. Endless views of fast-food and shopping store chains, along with their signage along wide roads and highways, reflect a lack care. Thoughtfulness doesn’t require money, it requires a state of mind. When not keeping me into a state of apathy, these spaces make me sad. I hear Pascal say, "In difficult times, carry something beautiful in your heart." I imagine Ireland. In my heart are ocean views, dramatic cliffs, tidy cottages and graceful green pastures. In my heart are winding roads lined with fuchsia hedges and stone walls. In my heart is the dignity with which the towns are laid out and the homes are cared for. In my heart is the lovely inconvenient narrowing in the road that insists that you slow down...make room...and engage with another soul on their way. Courtney A Brown
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(For anyone longing for simplicity or clarity.)
I'm looking forward to the day when on a moments notice, I can grab everything I need, throw it in a bag and hit the road or sky. I've enjoyed consumption, but now one of my favorite past-times is getting rid of things....forever...ahhh.... Like many, I fondly recall when life was simpler. The last time for me was when I lived in a studio apartment in New York City with one small table, 2 chairs, a sofa sleeper, a trunk and a lovely view. There was nothing more I wanted. I expected my life would evolve and change....marriage, divorce (didn't expect that), marriage (as I'd hoped), a child and a career. My "grown up" years have been filled with more loving, sharing, nurturing, joy, and meaning than I could have imagined. But, never in my youth, did I expect to spend the amount of time I have looking for, buying, returning, loosing, finding, organizing, forgetting, straightening, fixing, dusting, packing and unpacking...things that I didn't care about. I don't know what I might have done with those lost moments, but this summer, I had a taste - sIxteen days in Ireland with my husband, daughter and just three small suitcases. With so little to manage, I felt closer to myself, my family, my purpose, my humanity and the natural world. Thoughts of returning home were followed by an urgent need to purge. My life was about to change and has. With each piece of paper or piece of furniture I send off, I'm that much closer to the life I've long been creating, but always had something in the way. Courtney A. Brown To send this note to a friend: |
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