An Incomplete Meditation on Connectedness
 
I am connected
 
to this computer
 
to this couch
 
to the sounds of the white noise machines in my kids’ rooms being carried through the speaker of our video monitor
 
to the buzzer on the drying machine and the great folding that awaits 
 
to having brushed my teeth to avoid mindless snacking
 
to the pile of paperwork immediately to my right and all the past, present, and future that it represents
—-
 
to my mom, who emailed me today with teacher resources about the Las Vegas massacre and told me about someone she knows who lost someone they know
 
to my brother who worked in a hotel on the Vegas Strip many years ago and my other brother who didn’t
 
to my brother-in-law who just spent the weekend with us and the brisket we smoked while he was here, the leftovers of which I ate for dinner tonight
 
to my wife, who is out teaching tonight
 
to my entire family, to all my friends, even the ones I have to read about on Facebook instead of hug
—-
 
to the words of Torah that were chanted this morning
 
to the timeless values that they represent
 
to the teachers I met with today in various permutations and on various subjects
 
to the students that sang with me in our nature sanctuary this morning
 
and those that didn’t
 
to the people I missed today and the people I connected with
to Tom Petty, dancing between life and death, among the wildflowers
 
to Jerry Garcia, who died before Twitter and Facebook, but who sings over my speakers almost every day
 
to music
 
to sound 
 
to breathing
 
to silence
 
there goes the drying machine
 
These connections break and mend my heart moment by moment
 
They obligate and liberate me
 
They teach me, outrage me, humble me, and remind me
 
To the extent that there is a me, they are me, and I them
 
Any meditation on connectedness that has a start and finish is necessarily incomplete 
 
Both start and finish are made up points on a made up line 
 
All that’s true is the unspeakably awesome truth toward which they direct my attention
An Incomplete Meditation on Connectedness

4 thoughts on “An Incomplete Meditation on Connectedness

  • October 4, 2017 at 10:45 am
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    Always a wordsmith and a poet. Your post made me feel connected to you as I could visualize the connections you describe. I could hear the buzzer on the dryer as I read those lines. I especially relate to you your statement that connections teach you, outrage you, and remind you. In some ways, this is similar to my opening paragraph on the same topic. We learn from our connections. We learn what to do and what not to do. We learn more about ourselves. What speaks to us and what does not. I enjoyed reading your post!

    • October 4, 2017 at 12:15 pm
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      Thank you Stacy! That drying machine sound is truly memorable!!!

  • October 4, 2017 at 10:54 am
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    This was a fun stream of consciousness. I appreciate the different lens on connectedness as to that of our familial relations, passions, and the senses.

    • October 4, 2017 at 12:15 pm
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      Thanks Drew. I am definitely reminding myself of the many connections that impact me as an educator and know you do the same!

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