Hopeful Thinking

In my 20 years as a performer, I did everything from singing to stand-up comedy. Stage manager to costume designer. Choreographer to chorus dancer. Producer to production manager. I’ve done my time on the boards. I loved it all, really. It’s hard work and much longer hours than anyone might suspect. But it was a very satisfying experience of friendship, teamwork and enhanced collaboration. It’s surprising as well, the diplomatic skills one can develop simply by navigating a series of artistic temperaments.  Most notable was my time doing stand-up comedy for six months on a cruise ship. I was also the MC for all the shows and the lead male vocalist in the stage productions. Beach every day, stage every night. Rinse and repeat. Fun, but exhausting.  It was the stand-up comedy part of that gig, however,  where I really learned to rely upon what I was getting from a room to determine what I was going to say next, and more specifically, how. It’s an instinct you learn to use v...

Think about your roles. How many of them do you have? How many hats are you wearing? Are you a parent, a teacher, a manager, a maker? Are you sibling, cousin, friend? These are our roles in life.  These roles come with responsibilities.  How’s that going for you? What do your roles ask of you? Are there limits to what they may ask? Are those limits yours or theirs? Revisit these questions later on and ask them of each of your various roles. Chances are, the answers will not only be very illuminating, they will make your life easier. But first, let’s consider the concept of kenosis. It’s a favorite concept of mine. In Greek it means “to empty.” Religiously, it was first used in Christianity to describe Jesus “emptying” his humanity before God.  But the concept and practice of kenosis is one that offers us a little bit of an opportunity to refresh ourselves when feeling spent. Because when we empty ourselves of who we “are” (or at least who we define ourselves to be and the...

The word inertia has two different definitions, even though they really are the same. The first is a tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged. The second is a physics definition, “a property of matter by which it continues in its existing state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line, unless that state is changed by an external force.” More simply said, if you throw a ball without gravity or friction being present it would keep going on forever. The friction of the air slows it down, and the gravity of the earth draws it in. Anything wishing to escape the gravity or friction of the earth and its atmosphere must have enough power to overcome them. It must be stronger than gravity and friction themselves.  But inertia also means to sit there and do nothing. It essentially states that any experience will continue without change, so long as nothing happens to it. Are you content with your present state of inertia? Assuming you may be one of those who feel their life isn’t goi...

Repent! The end is near! Of course, it always is. We are constantly ending things and beginning new ones. Sometimes the new thing looks a lot like the old thing, but it never is completely. So did the thing evolve, or end and re-begin? There’s a word in the field of religious study with a funny sound to it. Eschatology. It comes from the Greek éschatos , meaning "last" and -logy meaning "the study of.” It originated in the mid-1800s as a theological term regarding the ending of time. In addition to considering how various cultures predict the end of the world, it also provided a contrast point for discussions on the immortality of the soul. It’s funny how difficult change is for us when we recognize that change occurs constantly. The ephemeral occurs against a backdrop of the eternal constantly. But that again makes me want to ask the question: does a thing evolve, or end and re-begin? If a city is destroyed by a natural disaster and then is rebuilt from the ground up d...