people...

There's a story that goes with these images. Between my apartment in the ghetto and my local haunt (Lazuli Bar) where I regularly utilize internet services while enjoying morning coffee (served by Sebastian) and after-class beer (served by Miguel), there's a corner of the beach which is territory for the creative power of the human spirit.

There's a man, his name is maybe either Lupi or Lukey (he gave up trying to get me to understand him after repeating himself 4 times - it was a rough morning for him). He spends each day inviting art to this part of the beach, this corner of the planet. He builds sand sculptures, very pleasing to my eyes because they are both playful and skillful, allowing me to remember what it was like to be a child and feel awe for the whimsical and magical, the world as it was before I grew into seriousness. Dragons, gnomes, castles, alligators, and other creatures rise up from the world they inhabit below. They come to the surface to see what's real here, what we humans believe in.

This morning I enjoyed a beautiful run along the high cliffs. I came down to the beach and watched the surfers begin to gather in the growing surf. Something has shifted here in Praia da Luz. The weather has turned ever so slightly. The British retirees who live here much of the year have been joined by young men, travelling in vans and beat up Land Rovers, coming in search of waves. A nice shift, I gotta admit.

As I was walking from the sand to the stone 'boardwalk' I passed by the sand artist standing, staring at his corner of creation. His sculptures had been toppled sometime during the night. My breath caught in my throat. I hadn't spoken with him yet other than to say "bon dia" - a morning greeting. I looked at his eyes, his crestfallen shoulders. I said, "What happened?" I wasn't going for intelligence in my question, I was going for contact with this man - arriving back to his life to see that it had been altered, dramatically, sadly.

We exchanged a few words with our limited shared vocabulary. He knew the word "stupidity" and I knew the words "I'm so sorry." I asked him if I could take his photo. He agreed. Fortunately for me, earlier in the week, I took a couple of pictures of this corner of creation as the sun rising in the east, caressing the shoulders of the magical beings while the world was waking up.

Side jump... without getting into the confusing and gnarly details, I've managed to trigger (annoy, anger, frustrate, piss off) one of my housemates in the last couple of days. I'm not at all clear what to do about the situation because I've approached her a few times with an olive branch and she seems uninterested in making peace or getting to the heart of the issue together. This has made life in class and at home a little tense for me. She and my other female housemate are very tight and so I'm feeling a little ex-communicated (I'm actually feeling a flashback to middle school but that's another story!). I've been doing much soul searching and feeling into my own heart. A sense of helplessness rises up because I don't like living in tension; I very much like the experience of stepping into the proverbial 'fire' with someone and coming out the other side together, more deeply seen and known.

It is/was very tempting to make an 'other' out of my classmate - make her an adversary because of the discomfort and helplessness that I am feeling. Lord knows, sometimes there's nothing I want more in the world than an 'enemy' so that I can reinvigorate my sense of being a separate self who needs to be constantly vigilant and ready to rumble to protect my personal territory (aka "ego"). But meeting the sand artist this morning helped me to look at this with a broader vision.

I have a little spot of sand. Every day is fresh. Every day is new. What happens on this territory is not determined by the wind, the high tide line, or the drunken or bored or angry visitors who come during the night. What happens on this creative territory is a reflection of the openness of my heart and my willingness to accept all that passes my way, greet it with curiosity and compassion rather than make it personal - it's not personal, it's Life.

Today, Lupi/Lukey has a long day in the sun and breeze re-creating life as he feels it in his hands. I, myself, have a late start and will head to a massage practice session this afternoon. This will give me, too, an opportunity to create a part of the world by using my hands - inviting the magic and mystery out from below the surface.

I'm learning that feeling into life from fullness requires that my mind and heart be open and that my hands are ready to build and receive rather than heavy with weaponry.