I am writing this from my bathtub, soaking in semi-hot water after a big workday. Sounds kind of luxurious and it is except for this funny thing where - and we never know if it will happen - the water heater decides to stop working for our bathtub spigot. No other faucet in the house has this issue. And it’s kind of ridiculous because the only way to remedy it is, if the hot water turns cold, the bather has to get out of the tub to turn on the sink faucet and let it run until the water runs hot. Then get back in the tub and turn the tub faucet back on and then pray you only have to do that once. I once had to do it five times which just completely missed the point of the bath altogether. But my husband did make me this beautiful bath caddy which kind of makes up for the hot water situation and which I am still deciding about what to set on it while I bathe. An iPad to watch a movie? No, I would prune thirty minutes in. A glass of wine and a tiny speaker playing Kenny G? Maybe. The idea I came up with tonight was a small grocery store cake on its little plastic tray. I would not cut a piece of cake and put it on a plate. I would bring the whole cake in the bath with me and a fork (I’m not a total heathen) and just eat it that way because we all know cake tastes better that way. I kind of like the idea of buying one that said “Happy Birthday” even though it’s not my birthday. That sounds kind of perfect.
I am sure this hot water malfunction would be easily explained by a plumber. I picture him talking about the pipe that goes to the bathtub spigot having an issue. And also, we haven’t called a plumber because Joe insists on adding it to the list of house things he is “able to fix/can figure it out/will address but today isn’t good.” (Did I say I love my bath caddy?). Anyway, I am sure it could be explained by a professional as to why it’s malfunctioning, but while we are still dealing with it, I like to feel like it’s a little magical reason as to why it’s not working. Because why would only ONE FAUCET not work? The water heater works or it doesn’t, right? So what I think is happening is a little sprite or fairy or something is running around by our water heater in our crawl space, laughing and giggling while he pushes some button to make the water cold just as we settle into the tub. (If you’re a plumber reading this, please don’t explain why it’s happening in technical jargon in the comments - let me keep my little fantasy.)
So, since the world seems kind of upside down, let’s talk about magic today. Other factors of life exist alongside the issues humans create and it is important to not forget those. So I will continue with other moments/quotes/facts that I have found to have some magic and beauty running through them.
The moon on my walk this evening. And these cattle in the field in the pasture where I live. How did life lead me here? How did it come to pass? I think of my 12 year old self and how she could never have known this is where we would be this many years later. How many twists and turns led us here. How I have no idea where I will be twenty years from now, how I don’t want to know. So many Easter eggs yet to find in the hunt that will take millions of steps from today to me at 68. I am excited to know her though, my 68 year old self. I feel myself making my way towards her with love and excitement.
Penelope completely content, soaking up vitamin D while the garden awaits her spring wake up.
Do you know about the "heart field"? It refers to the “electromagnetic field generated by the human heart, which is considered the strongest rhythmic field produced by the body, extending beyond the body and detectable even a few feet away; essentially, it's the magnetic field emitted by the heart during its contractions, carrying information about a person's emotional state,” per the HeartMath Institute. So basically, a heart gives off an energy field that extends feet away from the physical body that cannot be seen but can be felt. Magic, right? In a world full of materialism, I love the scientific magic of the unseen, such as quantum physics. Easy to dismiss until proven. I also love that humans can be so convinced that something is false for so long until one day, that falsehood becomes accepted scientific fact. I am thinking Galileo, Kepler, etc. You can read more about those here:
Mavericks and Heretics - Ideas Rejected, Later Proven Correct
Quote I loved this week:
“It's a nice big fat philosophical question, about: how do you get through? Sometimes you don't survive whole, you just survive in part. But the grandeur of life is that attempt. It's not about that solution. It is about being as fearless as one can, and behaving as beautifully as one can, under completely impossible circumstances. It's that, that makes it elegant. Good is just more interesting, more complex, more demanding. Evil is silly, it may be horrible, but at the same time it's not a compelling idea. It's predictable. It needs a tuxedo, it needs a headline, it needs blood, it needs fingernails. It needs all that costume in order to get anybody's attention. But the opposite, which is survival, blossoming, endurance, those things are just more compelling intellectually if not spiritually, and they certainly are spiritually. This is a more fascinating job. We are already born, we are going to die. So you have to do something interesting that you respect in between.” The inimitable Toni Morrison.
What has been sustaining you? What is magic to you these days?
I am sending magic and all of my love to you this week and every week.
Seja
Your writing is my magic. Thank you for sharing it. Also I have been able to spend much more time in my woodshop and that has really made me feel whole.