Friday, August 24, 2007

DAY ZERO

Arrival.

8:15 pm and cooler than Oahu.
There's something about Maui. Those of us from Oahu sense a decrease of pressure. We slow. We breathe.
I think I can work here. Have you felt that way about a place? A nurturing beauty?
Safety?
The retreat begins tomorrow. I see familiar faces. The buzz of concentrated purpose.
How will I feel?
Like a prickly crown of thorns sensitive to every piece of advice?
Reacting like a hedgehog?

Or should I try to blend in. Fade. Be an observer.
Like the male frogfish who lets the world drift by?


I surmise that something inbetween might suffice.
But how to create that balance between thoughtful consideration and firmness of belief?
That is the dilemma.
How many voices do you listen to?
How much risk do you take?
What say you bloggers?
What say you?

5 comments:

Kim Rossi Stagliano said...

Pat, if you cloned yourself 100 times you'd still be gloriously discernible from the copies. I hope you can concentrate on the writing and not be too swamped as the conference's version of "The Boy Who Lived" as in "That's Pat Wood! The woman who wrote Lottery!" And, um, if you slow down from Oahu to Maui do you end up at a dead stop or going backwards? Uptight AA personality NY/EastCoaters would like to know. Slow down on the next isle of paradise! I did get a chuckle out of that. Did I miss a mention of Holly? She IS OK? Isn't she????

ORION said...

Holly is alive and well in the room next door. I have been instructed to show self control with respect to my photography so I can't lurk behind her back and take shots of:
Holly checking in.
Holly unpacking.
Holly drinking RED BULL.
Holly typing.
Holly...

Anonymous said...

My back-seat driving advice:

Listen to all.
Rely upon none.

The Anti-Wife said...

Just be yourself and follow you instincts. You'll be fine.

Anonymous said...

As you're discovering... there is definitely something about Maui. When we moved there in Sept 2000, from the moment I stepped off the plane, I knew I'd come home. Yes... We slow. We breathe.