text: SomaNews – April 2016
  Put on Your Clown Shoes
  As we mature, sometimes life becomes sour, the adventure gone, our identity hidden by our culture, our work, or by our own selves. It can also happen when we become resigned or depressed.
  If this is your experience, I say keep sharing the wisdom of your life experience anyway. Hand out those gifts that were showered on you as you walked this path, this lifetime. Offer up the learning from your mistakes that might be listened to now or heard later.
  And perhaps above all, don't forget to keep playing, laughing at yourself, and taking a deep breath into life!
  As I begin my walk down the mountain of my life, I keep my eyes open – bringing width into my seeing that can get narrow. I feel my feet landing on the earth, reminding me of my connection to the great Mother. I reach into the sky, bringing length where I become the conduit from sky to earth. I refuse to shorten my stride. I will not plod through the rest of my life. I will take my place and take a stand.
  And with courage, I will open up my inside and dive into the depths of my soul, searching for the pearl that was thrown deep into the waters of my life. This is what we were made for. If we do not dive deep and come blazing out of the water with a zest for life, spreading what we believe with grace and dignity, we are an insult to our own life. This works no matter where we are on our path of life.
  Now, for the lighter side….
  I saw a TED Talk given by a gentleman named Stuart Brown, who is part of the National Institute for Play. Yes, that's right – it's a nonprofit organization that studies how play affects us. He used a word that was new to me, neoteny – the retention, by adults, of traits previously seen only in juveniles. And we all could use a big clown car of it 🙂
  We need play. Play is not the opposite of work; play is the opposite of depression. We need to engage in activities for enjoyment and recreation rather than a serious or practical purpose.
  Amuse yourself by engaging in imaginative pretense. Get out there with those big imaginary clown shoes and wiggle and giggle and smile at the next person that walks by you. Talk with the birds and sit in the grass and watch the insects living their lives.