Speak, Pray, and the Art of Aiming
You are what you speak, or at least that is what the world seems to
deflect in my direction, as I ponder its pathways and back alleys. We learn
that commanding an audience is all about charisma, but what exactly is
charisma, anyways? Now that we have
begun the next four years, I just need to comment on how those two guys in
suits spoke. It was impressive to get a sense of each by the way they handled
themselves in front of a crowd, in their cases, millions… oy. But, in this day
and age, it is not only about standing in front of others, speaking with authority
and miming the proper hand gestures, indicating ‘power positions’ with flare
and candor, it is also about the communication that enables the entire world to
operate as one: digital communication.
We spend hours with emails, social networking, blogging, and just
general dialog on the Internet. How ‘do’ we personify a charismatic presence
with our digital persona? How ‘do’ we market ourselves in the digital age? Many
just choose to ignore this and attempt not to design their persona at all. And
even more seem to just look at the bottom line and let that indicate the path
to take, instead of looking to the 'potential' bottom line and then… aiming.
I'm still trying to hit the bullseye... but, I learned to speak Hebrew this way—I aimed. I learned to draw this way
(excuse the pun…)—I aimed. I learned to paint this way—I aimed. I learned to
woodwork this way, yeah—I aimed. And I learned to write this way—I aimed. Just
look at some of my old blog posts (or don't…) and you will get a visceral sense
of the kind of Robocop retargeting exercises that I attempted. The art of
aiming takes loads of concentration, dedication, and patience. It’s just like
the long exhale before a perfect shot, or the Zen that one arrives at while
floating in the sea, meditating on nirvana, or praying. It's all about the aim…
Charismatically speaking, we all know that charisma is a combination of
voice, appearance, body movement, and content, but what about those people that
exude charisma without saying a word or indicating a gesture? We have all met
people like that and it is usually a mysterious and thought provoking
experience. Back in the 90's, when I first saw John Travolta in my apartment
building elevator in Los Angeles, we met eyes, but didn’t say a word. I
remember thinking to myself, “Do I know this person?” He looked familiar, but I
just couldn’t place him until the ride ended and we parted ways. Then I
remembered… feeling foolish that I kept staring at the guy. He must have
thought I was just a hapless tourist debating asking for an autograph, instead
of a neighbor who unknown to himself had recognized a movie star and was
plumbing the depths of his mind for a forgotten memory, maybe past-life, maybe
just a result of very early onset senility. I was responding to an unspoken
energy, an energy that rode on a cosmic wavelength that ended with my ability/inability
to tune, aim, and then perceive its vibrations.
It can go the other way too: I once sat at a table with a famous rabbi.
He has written many books and if you are Jewish, you most likely have one or
more of them on a shelf somewhere. This man was short, with a long gray beard
of course, but he didn’t need to say anything to exude that presence that I am
referring to. When he did speak, I was
expecting so much that I almost felt let down that I wasn’t elevating off the
floor or something. My unrealistic and over-exacerbated expectations had jaded
my ability to tune, aim, and perceive. That must be the drawback to having your
reputation precede you—expectations soar and the expectees hit the floor…
In this week's parsha, Chayei Sarah(Genesis 23:1-25:18)… um, naagh, I
was going to write about how Eliezer, the servant of Abraham, broke the curse of Canaan by getting over his
selfish desires to have his son paired with the daughter of Isaac, essentially
mastering his sense of aim, his charisma, but I gotta move on to other (related)
stuff.
I prayed the other day. Praying is a strange and beautiful thing.
Sometimes it is so flat that it feels like brushing your teeth or something;
but, other times… it just pulls you off your feet, where you don't even notice
the treetops and clouds meandering by below you and your mind and heart fill
with the Universe. In those times, when our sense of time and self-awareness just
stops and the paradox of our chaotically blessed existence makes perfect sense,
we are given a divine gift, a responsibility to… just be. It can come in many
ways, this chaotically blessed awareness of existence, in my case
skateboarding, surfing, snowboarding, mountain biking, and yes, praying. I can also
see it entering via the sudden realization of a well-placed investment, the
look on the face of a hungry child that has just been given a meal, or the sublime
awareness of love… waiting in the wings.
Sometimes we live life and sometimes we just ride it. Both paths are
amazing and 'way' worth it. We get old, fast, doing either one, but with the awareness
of age comes a youth of spirit, a kind of giddy wisdom that tickles our
centers, our souls. Ultimately, it all comes down to our intensions. The more
we practice, the closer we get; so, speak what you think, think what you believe,
pray deeply about it, and aim, baby, aim!
Shabbat Shalom!
