Most people hate goodbyes but there's a surety in that there is something special about them. Something so special it makes them so fleeting. Maybe it's the moment of pure honest affection. I always close my eyes and repeat the goodbyes in my head. There's a comfort from knowing someone cares when you go. A comfort knowing someone is there if and when you return.
Mother
There are so many words I want to say but none that would adequately portray the person that is my mother.
Tado Ando
' Every building has its own unique set of conditions and problems that it must address. A work of architecture can therefore only be a unique solution that can exist in no place other than where it is built.'
A unique fascination lies with Tado Ando. Not because he is a self taught architect or because he is envisioned to be the most endearing Japanese man to have ever exists but because he's a story teller. With each manipulation of materials a small part of story comes to existence. Every creation is unique. Yet there is a common underlying motive or vision that is prevalent when in presence of his work. That is the inclination to transcend boundaries and to nurture 'places'.
Regardless of how daring or innovative a space one may create, the issue of 'place' is not so easy a matter that a new value can be generated by a single building. A 'place' is where culture is fostered by existing equally within the minds of all people as a mental landscape into which their memories are inscribed. As such, Tado Ando places (pun intended) a great amount of time and sustained effort that is necessary to initiate something upon it.
Naoshima
On the island of Naoshima solitary was found amoungst Monet and the the genius architecture that is Tadao Ando.
The art program in Naoshima aspires to put into practice two ideals. Firstly, "a good community makes a good country and a good culture" and secondly "(the) economy is a servant to culture"- a plea to use corporate profits responsibly.
Whilst some may disagree the program continues. Reasoning? It is because in spite of diversity of values the people of the island are confident. Confident that the viewing of art stimulates people to think about what wealth really is.
Meow Meow Meow
When it comes to a cafe it's generally a coffee fix that people seek, not here.
Cat-ya later.
Change
Sometimes more often than desired, there comes a time where things stop being fun and games. Things stop being easy. And you have to think. Think about what it is you really want. Think about what’s important, what you want to do, what you want to hold on to and move forward.
The trouble is though, it’s never that easy to know want you REALLY want.
It’s so easy to go through the motions of the everyday. It’s comfortable. But the thing is, if you stop looking at anything other than what’s in front of you, you loose sight. You loose sight of potential futures and even of what was behind. You get caught up in progressive moments that you can forget how you even arrived at the very present moment of existence you are at. It’s only when you realize that you’re approaching some sort of threshold, that you’re not who you want to be, that you then MAYBE start to question the possession, motions, interactions of the everyday. I say maybe because let’s be honest change is scary.
Change forces you to adapt and what if you don’t adapt? Where do you go from there? I guess the answer is you start a new. You make a plan, you lay the foundations and you start building. You don't rely on anyone else. Because in this life you're the only person who can keep you afloat. Yes. You can hold on to that raft of yours but when dusk comes to dark, when the sun goes to sleep if you're just holding on, you are just drifting. And that doesn't get you anywhere. It's sink or swim. But maybe, just sometimes, its not always about having to know what direction you're going. Maybe its just about keeping afloat long enough to one day make a decision. Maybe that's okay too. Maybe we just have to trust ourselves that we will make the right decision and know that we can pick ourselves up again if ts not.
Uluru
I think people who have the truest perspective on life aren't the people who have travelled the most, seen the most, have the most or even have experienced the most. Agree or disagree but I find it is the people who know how see the beauty in what's in front of them. The people who can be content existing in any space and are grateful for what they have. These are the people that inspire me. I forever want to be exploring the land I call home. In the words of Dorothea Mackeller 'I love a sunburnt country'.
A Meaningful Life
Psychologists have a habit of focusing on the bad stuff. Family issues, growing up issues, peer group issues; its rare to see a psychologist with a focus on the good stuff. Why don't they ever ask what makes you happy?
Its a simple questions really. What makes you happy? Yet at times it can be the hardest thing to answer. Sometimes its just so easy to focus on all the things that are making us unhappy or sometimes we just get too caught up in what everyone else is doing that we forget what it is that we want to do for ourselves. Either way losing sight of genuine happiness is easy and gaining that happiness back isn't easy. Finding it does not simply occur with the acts of eating or entertainment. Those are short lived. What needs to occur for lasting happiness is fostered by the thoughts of Psychologist Martin Seligman and Aristotle. I think happiness come from finding meaning. A meaningful life. A life that isn't about hedonism but rather pursuing something bigger than oneself, acting in the service of others and fostering good relationships. Relationships that aren't fleeting, that are for the better.