Push and Pull
A little more conversation and a little less action, please.
June 6, 2021
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I’m Tired. The capitalization is on purpose.
If you’re a regular reader of this weekly column, then you won’t be surprised by that. Last weekend’s Walkabout Day ended up being followed by Wipeout Week, more so than I’d expected. I am recovering well and the hammy pain behind my right knee is nearly gone, yet I’d also be a fool to not listen to my body telling me to roll it back a bit. And if my body hadn’t convinced me, some voices from concerned quarters might have on their own.
It appears that, even to people I know are doing a lot in their own lives, from their perspective I am doing more than a lot - to the point of concerned questions. These are people who I have learned to take seriously when they speak up, so in that spirit I decided to ease back a bit this week and compose a poem to share with you this week instead of a longer post. I wrote it literally this morning over my coffee and quiet, and it’s about those concerns the People I Love have shared with me.
It’s a reminder of things I know, but can easily forget. Most importantly, that to be here and now with myself and others is just about the best life can offer.
Maybe it can help you, too, when you need those same reminders.
Enjoy. See you again next week.
Chins Up, Everyone.
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Push and Pull
By JDK Wyneken
I’m taking on too much these days,
Or so I’ve been told.
Maybe it’s true, I don’t know.
I fear I’m too busy running out of time
To stop to breathe and consider.
But even so, I see
It’s far too easy to make
Simple things complicated,
Peaceful times too busy, and the
Pursuit of presence a back-pocket tool,
A break-in-case-of-emergency option
Out of sight and mind far too often
While I compete against an opponent
Of my own creation, keeping score of
A game no one else knows I’m playing.
If I’m enough in all things, then why
Do I try to do too much of more, and
Less of what I truly desire most;
Calm and connection and all the love
That literally surrounds and blankets me?
I could spend more time and ink on why, but
Instead I’ll let that lie and stay
Right where I am right now, and take in
All I can with this one breath in and out,
And tell you what I see.
I’m above the line and can
See all the way to you smiling back at me,
Lazily swirling that drink in your hand
And smirking at me as if to say I
Could’ve stopped to sit with you anytime.
From here I see and hear singing
And laughing and the crackling of a fire
Around which all are welcome and no one
Asks where I come from because
It only matters that I’m here.
It’s where I flow, and we move,
Dancing to the only tune that matters and where
We need no accessories or shortcuts;
Crystal balls and solemn oaths
Are as absent as they are unnecessary;
Where there are more than enough
Flowers to smell, flavors to taste
Love and souls to touch, words to hear,
And reflections and visages to see
To fill my cup with here and now.
So today I’ll slow down to imagine
The bend in our road, to see what I too often
Blow past, resume a slower pace, and keep
My attention on you, me, and where we Are.
This alone is far better than anything I myself can create.
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Thanks for reading My Sunday Poem. Here are some important updates from my past week:
Soul Book of the Week: A revisit of Return to Love by Marianne Williamson
Book On My Nightstand: Fatherland by Robert Harris. Savoring this re-read.
Best Show / Movie I Watched: Mare of Easttown, Season One finale. What a great show.
Strongest Earworm Song: The Chauffeur by Duran Duran. No idea how it happened. Don’t judge.
Best Triathlon Training Moment: A whole workout dedicated to exercise recovery. Felt great.
Toughest Triathlon Training Moment: Realizing I’ve been overtraining. Need to ratchet it back a bit.
Favorite Hangout Shirt of the Week: This one. Because the New York Black Yankees are one of the great franchises of the old Negro Leagues.
Coolest Thing of the Week: the feedback I got on last week’s Walkabout.
Thing I Know Now That I Didn’t Last Week: that foam rollers are gifts from the workout gods.
Most Helpful Perspective / Advice of the Week: “Stop beating the shit out your body, please.”
Current Wanderlust List: 1) California Still; 2) Ireland; 3) Vancouver, BC. Love that city.
