An Avalanche of Wonders

On the power of the people, wonderful books and poems, the new Bob Dylan movie, a delight that happens daily, and wonder questions to help you reflect

“I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.”
—Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

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Weekly Wonders

Even in a week that saw such a depressing event as the fascist takeover of the White House, there has been such an avalanche of wonders that I’m going to have to resort to a bulleted list.

But first, I will remind us of Mahatma Gandhi’s wise and accurate statement:

“Remember that all through history, there have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they seem invincible. But in the end, they always fall. Always.”

In searching for this quote, I stumbled on the review in The Guardian of Marcel Dirsus’ book How Tyrants Fall: And How Nations Survive. The review states that Dirsus “endorses the Harvard political scientist Erica Chenoweth’s ‘3.5% rule’. If that many of your subjects participate in mass demonstrations, you’re done for.” Good news!

We’re not nearly as powerless as we are led to believe. And one of the most powerful forms of protest, I believe, is making art and living a life of joy.

Okay, on to our plethora of wonders for the week:

• RIP Garth Hudson, the last surviving member of The Band. Garth was the mad genius at the keyboards, an elemental part of their distinctive sound. I’m a huge Band fan and while I’m very sad they are gone, their music most definitely lives on. Here's a classic clip of him from The Last Waltz.

• This gorgeous balm of a poem, “Small Kindnesses” by Danusha Laméris: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/19/magazine/poem-small-kindnesses.html?unlocked_article_code=1.pE4.VDRV.C9hCbkCv8fIJ&smid=url-share

• I’ve started two threads in our Community Chat, one for Wonderful Poems and one for Wonderful Books. Paid subscribers can post and see what others have posted. I will start other threads as well, such as Wonderful Movies, Wonderful Music, Wonderful Art, etc. Feel free to suggest ones.

• I’m reading Michael Ondaatje’s novel Warlight. Incredibly well done and fascinating. Ondaatje is a master of characters and subtle observations. It’s a strange and spooky world, but quite compelling. I’m so grateful for hours curled on the couch reading, especially when my body is not feeling well. It’s such a relief to slip into another world.

• Don and I saw the new movie about Bob Dylan’s early years, A Complete Unknown. Absolutely riveting and phenomenal casting (except for the actor playing Johnny Cash, the one weak link). Did you see it? What did you think? Post in the comments below.

• Continuing my obsession with Awakening, I’m doing Adyashanti’s 30-Day Wake Up Challenge, small daily practices to lead to self-realization. It’s beautiful, helpful, and do-able. I highly recommend it. You can start anytime. https://www.soundstrue.com/products/the-30-day-wake-up-challenge-1

From the Wonder Factory

The doors are open now (and only until February 1) for our Brilliant Playmates creative community and membership program.

This program offers deep support, inspiration, and camaraderie for your creative life in a very affordable, do-able way. It’s like a gym membership for your creative life.

You’ll learn how to romance your muse, access deep inspiration, get clear on your creative dreams and goals, and have the structure to realize those dreams, as well as a place to share your art and get loving feedback on it. No more going it alone!

We have so much fun and at the same time make great strides in our creative lives. You can find out all about Brilliant Playmates here:

Also, this Thursday, January 30 at 11 am PST (2 pm EST, 7 pm GMT), I’m offering a free webinar on The Six Essential Ingredients of a Thriving Creative Life. When one or more of these essential ingredients is missing, artists tend to struggle and suffer. Discover what your creativity needs to shine. I’ll also talk about the Brilliant Playmates community and how it offers all six ingredients. Register for the free webinar here:

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As part of a 12-week course I’m doing with Jeannine Ouellette, I’ve been writing essayettes on various delights, following Ross Gay’s practice from his truly wonderful and wonder-inducing The Book of Delights. If you want more wonder in your life, this book would be a good one to read.

In the writing course I’m taking, Ouellette offers a close read of one of Gay’s essays each week and then a prompt, following elements of the structure of that essay.

Here’s the delight essayette I wrote this week. It needs a title, so please feel free to suggest one in the comments.

SUNRISE

Something I’ve noticed is that I never tire of a sunrise. I’m not even a morning person. My whole life I have struggled out of bed nearly every morning, longing to stay curled in sweet repose and the blessed self-forgetfulness of sleep. But when the sun comes up over the trees across the road on these icy mid-winter mornings and turns the field across the way from pallid gray to glittering rose-gold, it is pure magic every single time—no less for having witnessed it hundreds of times.

And the entire world seems to get in on this magic. A pair of geese appear out of nowhere, honking loudly “Good morning! Good morning!” And it is a good morning even if I was up all night in pain on the couch again. And the yellow school bus roars by, flashing its banner of brightness out on the main road I can see from under the birch tree where my husband and I gather to do our Chi Gong-like movements, and the little birds start to sing and look eagerly for the birdseed Don will fling for the ground feeders.

Yes, the parade of traffic, as if on cue, gets louder and busier, people zooming off to work or to take reluctant kids to school. But it’s still a good morning because the sun has decided to come up once again and warm and brighten the world and prod the green things into growing and all of us into giving the business of living another go, no matter what the trials and terrors of the night may have held. Have you noticed this too, this quiet daily miracle?

And now for this week’s Wonder Sparks, small practices to help you cultivate more wonder, delight, play, and creativity in your life.