“It doesn’t interest me how old you are.
I want to know
If you will risk looking like a fool for love,
For your dream,
For the adventure of being alive.”
”The Invitation” by Oriah Mountain Dreamer
I want to know
If you will risk looking like a fool for love,
For your dream,
For the adventure of being alive.”
”The Invitation” by Oriah Mountain Dreamer
The first day of arriving at the school, I felt like an imposter who somehow got into some sort of ‘Superhero’ society, (for real though…). My cohort was ridiculously intelligent, compassionate and multi-talented (I had no clue how I got in on this or how I was going to keep up, but you know: love, trust and surrender, right?). I met my future collaborators, interior designer, Mansi Patel and composer, Charlie Cooper. Starting with Mansi, we stood on the 2nd-floor balcony talking about architecture, bodies in space/time and our passion for finding the harmony and interconnections between our inner and outer realities. She was an expert in creating outer spaces and I had some insight on shaping inner spaces. It wasn’t your typical day 1 conversation and that was precisely when and how I knew I was exactly where I needed to be and that this journey was going to be far beyond anything I could imagine. Within two weeks we found ourselves completely entangled in one another’s world, sketching, imagining, making, conversing, moving, designing, choreographing and building.
Upon Reflection:
“Go beyond everything. Don’t collect anything. Remember you are inner pure awareness only. All that arises are appearances in consciousness. Don’t bother with all that. Rest only as awareness. This is the secret.”
~ Mooji
I used to have a habit of listening to others opinions especially if they seemed more informed and I didn’t trust my own knowing. However, at the time I couldn’t really think outside of the present moment; I learned to set aside all the extra banter and opinions mostly because it triggered a lot of pain in my body and put me in an anxious state. In this time, I practiced listening to my awareness as I relied heavily on my own intuition to help me navigate through my days. There were a few whispers and opinions around my choice of supervisor and pursuit of collaboration, but they never shifted my own knowing. So far, my experience with my collaborators and supervisor have been professional, well-guided and supportive to my growth. I definitely still fall out of alignment, but the difference for me now is the awareness of when I do.
Side Note Story: Finding my supervisor
Within these first two weeks, I found my supervisor, Robert Kitsos. When I asked if he’d be my supervisor, his first response was, “you do know you have a whole year to decide?” In which I replied, “nah it’s you if you accept, can we meet next Tuesday?” I never looked back, he’s been the rock of this journey and I’m continually humbled by his openness, compassion and guidance.
**Coming up next: Exploring body architecture