A “Multi-Media” Experience

By Kristen Boyesen

THE BEDFORD STANDARD

A back yard. A chair in the shade on a warm summer day. Solitude.

But is it?

A train blows its whistle. All through Bedford one can have the company of the sound of a passing train. What is it carrying? Where is it going? Who is the conductor? Does he or she live nearby or far away? Have a family? Like to take walks in the woods?

Ah, but the mind can wander off to other realms so easily! … Wandering from what is.

Here in the back yard is a multi-experiential phenomenon unlike anything available at the cinema, in a computer game, on TV, or at an amusement park. All those things are “entertainment” that are external to human existence. All are part of the world of judgments, wants, complaints and schedules.

Hear that bird? No need to ask what kind of bird. Its song is part of the fabric of existence. Purple petals around a white star center along twining vines. Follow the vines with your eyes. Are you a bug walking the vine-path like it was a highway? The green leaves arch over this highway. Tall trees (side shoots) must be walked around. The journey is long. The highway sways in the wind.

But there we go again, off in another world: the world of imagination.

In the back yard things are just as they are. The tall grasses at the edge of the garden that escaped the blade of the mower show patterns of seeds brown and ready to fall. Passing clouds change the grass color from dark green to bright vibrant green. The very naming of it takes away from the moment of the experience.

Breezes arise from all directions; then there is calm. The scents of the plants and the earth waft back and forth, different with the changing breezes, different when the sun beats down hard and the breezes are silent. Each moment is a new experience never to be repeated.

Are you there to be with these moments? Being with the moments of our lives creates true joy. The happiness and laughter of a movie or a TV show are fun, but soon the show is over and the fun has stopped. One can search for more fun to replace the previous fun. One can spend every waking moment searching for fun and for meaning in things that are done, performed, or watched from afar.

Then again, one can also experience the fun of the movie knowing in advance that it is just another experience of life that passes, as all experiences do, and to be present in the moments as they happen.  

Aha! Serendipity. Just as I wrote that last line, as I sat in my back yard, I heard a small sniff at my feet. Looking down I was startled to see a woodchuck! “Oh, my goodness,” I said out loud. (Really, no joke.) And away he went, just as startled as I was, turning on the spot and making a path of escape under my chair. Thank you Mr. or Mrs. Woodchuck for providing an “in the moment experience” to add to this writing. Thank you for the visit, but kindly stay on the outside of my garden fence!

Will he behave according to my wishes? Who knows? I have done the best I can to create a barrier. If he crosses it, I will make it again … not in anger, and not in resignation or malice, but as part of the game of life. I can no more predict his behavior than I can predict the weather or how a friend will behave towards me. To live by counting on expectations to be met in exactly the way we envision, causes stress and distress. Yes, there are expectations; there are always expectations. What we do and how we feel when expectations are not met is the difference between joy and misery. You probably know someone who lost their job or had an illness that changed their lives … for the better.

Start with the little expectations. Look at changes in outcome as opportunities for … Who knows! By learning a new way of meeting small disappointments, when a big one comes along (and it will; they always do sooner or later), there is a practice ready to help experience the disappointment to the fullest, then using the energy for creativity, innovation, or a new direction.

This process of change is made easier through the practice of mindfulness. Start in your own back yard or in the park. Delve into the moment and discover the freedom of non-judgmental existence. The “world as it is” is rich with experiences. Enjoy!

Kristen Boyesen, Life Learning & Creativity Coach and resident of Bedford, offers art and meditation-based classes and workshops for core creativity training and empowerment for change. She belongs to the American Holistic Medical Association Speakers Bureau, the Bedford Senior Network, and Young Audiences of Northeast Ohio. She gives rehabilitation workshops at the Brecksville VA Medical Center and is a graduate student in Art Therapy and Counseling at Ursuline College. Contact her at Kboyesen@thebedfordstandard.com.

Visit www.Art-Experiences.blogspot.com to see accompanying photos.