On June 20th we are planning to have the Summer Solstice service/concert, as we do each year. This time we are focusing on circles, seasons, and spirals.
Recently, I was listening to a lecture and the lecturer was making a distinction between “paradox” and “parallax.” Paradox is a statement that is seemingly contradictory. Parallax is looking at an object from a different viewpoint and seeing how it has seemingly changed. This exercise led me to the idea of “circles, spirals and seasons.” One of the reasons why we have yearly celebrations is that each time we are looking at something from a slightly different perspective. The experiences that we’ve had in the last year have given us a different perspective on many things. At this time we are now looking at things in an attempt to re-evaluate, re-invest, re-use, re-direct, and several other “re-“s.
Life goes on. While it would be easy to project our frustration, anger, and resentment on the pandemic, would it do any good? Of course not! The pandemic is the very thing which has given us the gift of looking again at what we may have taken for granted. I am reminded of the Joni Mitchell song “The Circle Game” in which we find these words: “We can’t return, we can only look behind from where we came and go round and round and round in the circle game… there’ll be new dreams, maybe better dreams… before the last revolving year is through.” I would be very interested to hear what is different for you.
M.C. Richards said, “All the arts we practice are apprenticeship. The big art is our life.” It is for this reason we celebrate our circles, seasons, stories and spirals. While certain events may happen again, what changes is our perspective. Parallax! We look at things with different feelings and different eyes because Life is constantly teaching us. Does that make our former decisions “bad?” Emphatically not! The basis of perception has changed. I hope that you will be able to hear our musical service/concert that celebrates our ever-circling selves as we “dance” our way through the great halls of time. And I hope that your “big art” is being shaped into something from which you can derive satisfaction.
Yours Always,
Ed Thompson
