The Power of Art

Last Wednesday, our Ministers' Meeting enjoyed a wonderful day out together, visiting Compton Verney in Warwickshire. It is mainly an art gallery, set in gorgeous grounds. The first painting we saw was a large one, An Eruption of Vesuvius by Moonlight by Pierre-Jacques Volaire (see below, apologies for slightly wonky image).

It stopped me in my tracks - such a wonderfully dramatic image. The photo above doesn't do justice to it, but the vivid contrast between the fire and energy of the volcano and the peaceful moon rising in the bay beyond it was... awesome. The explanation next to it reads, "The eruptions of Vesuvius were among the greatest spectacles of the eighteenth century and fired the imagination of artists throughout Europe... an inscription on the back records that it was painted sur le lieu (on the spot). Given the size of the painting, this is probably not true, but it conveys the important role that artists played in recording such sights before the invention of the camera."

There are several figures in the foreground, which strikes me as somewhat reckless... but each to their own, I guess.

My point in sharing this is to highlight the difference between art and photographs, which struck me at the time when I read the accompanying blurb. The art work may be almost photographic in its vivid reality, but the artist was free to compose his painting in the most skilful way in order to heighten the drama. Because what takes the breath away is the contrast between the yellows, reds, oranges and browns of the volcano and the greys, blues and whites of the peaceful, moonlit landscape. And they are balanced, juxtaposed, perfectly.

Sometimes, of course, a skilled photographer can capture such drama, contrast and balance - all of us can bring such photos to mind. My DH takes the magazine, Amateur Photographer, and there are sometimes astonishing images published in it, which achieve this magical effect. 

Whatever the medium, the power of art comes from the connection between the hand and eye of the artist and the eye and heart of the viewer. When this connection is made, it can make us (the viewers) see the world in a new way.

Sun in Your Heart

This week's quote reads, "Have sun in your heart and nonsense in your head."

Hmm. I'm not sure about the second part, but having sun in your heart does sound good. A source of warmth and illumination, which lifts our spirits, on the darkest days. For me, that of God within, the Spirit, is the "sun in your heart".

I do enjoy this time of year, when (at least in this part of the UK) there are more sunny days than rainy ones. I love drawing back the curtains each morning, to see blue skies, fluffy white clouds and sunshine. Even though part of me is uneasily aware that this has been the driest year for ages and we really could do with some rain....

There is a huge tree growing at the end of our garden and I like to feast my eyes on it, as I sit at my desk. It is now in its full Summer glory (see below) but I love it in all seasons.

The beauties of Nature call forth a deep response from me. The sun in my heart responding to the sun in the world around me. And I believe that being open to this can help us to be resilient to the darkness of the human world.

Laughter - really belly laughter, caused by amusement and joy - "nonsense in your head", if you like -  can also help us to be resilient. Last week, we watched the old film, Monty Python and the Holy Grail for the umpteenth time, and it was just as funny as the first time I saw it, way back when. Even though I knew what was coming, and could (at times) quote it word for word.

Awe, wonder, and the ability to laugh - all these qualities are precious gifts of the Spirit. For which I am truly grateful, every single day.

It Depends on Your Point of View

 This week's quote reads, "Some people feel the rain, others just get wet."

Feeling the rain... when the recent heatwave finally broke and some very welcome rain fell last Monday, I dashed outside to feel it on my face. So I guess I come into the first category.

How we respond to external stimuli depends on our state of mind, our state of heart. There is always more than one way of looking at anything: positively, negatively, or (as my DH would say) realistically. I'm a glass half-full person myself, so I tend to look on the bright side of life. Yet I recognise that this is a very privileged viewpoint: I am able to do this because I have a foundation of good things in my life to hold me up, to support me.

Each person's life is a rich tapestry of joys interwoven with sorrows. I do believe that they are inseparable, and that to feel on, you have to be open to feeling the other. And having the capacity to feel great joy and great sorrow also means that we have the capacity to love greatly. Which is surely a gift? We are living in difficult times, with terrible news breaking daily, whether it is Donald Trump bombing Iran, people starving in Gaza (and in so many other places) or the myriad species of plants and animals dying out because of our lack of care for our beleaguered planet.

Yet I also believe that there is a deep joy which comes from within us, which is not dependent on circumstances and outside events for its existence - it is a divine gift. If I may give you a personal example: the other day, I went for a walk around the fields which surround our village. The weather was beautiful. Summer was showing herself everywhere, in the ditches and the hedgerows and the fields themselves. I saw a red kite wheeling overhead, riding the thermals with such grace and majesty, and heard the pure song of a skylark. It was just gorgeous, and my heart was full of joy.

Then I came home and checked my e-mails, to find that a dear friend had died in their care home. My bubble of joy burst, and I was filled with sorrow by the news of their passing.

And yet, the fact that I had been open to the joy of the surrounding natural world helped me to be able to cope with the sorrow I felt. Without the one, the other would have hit me a lot harder. I do believe that if we live our lives vulnerably, at a deep spiritual level, feeling the rain rather than simply getting wet, we become more resilient to sorrow, as we are more open to joy.

Logic vs Imagination

This week's quote reads, "Logic takes you from point A to point B. Imagination takes you wherever you want."

There is a place for both, in most of our lives. Logic is needed for when we have particular tasks to do, and need to get from point A to point B. And for problem solving, and for keeping a cool head, when all around are losing theirs.

But imagination, which frees our minds from all bonds, is the richer of the two, I think. With my writer's hat on, I recall that the fantasy author, George R.R. Martin, famously divided writers into architects and gardeners - those who plan and outline their novels before writing, and those who make it up as they go along: discovery writers.

I have always considered myself to be a discovery writer, but when I was working on my fantasy trilogy, The Stones of Veylindré, I found myself falling into a third camp, which I christened "landscape gardeners". These I defined as writers who decide what to write as they go along, but also have a clear idea of what the final 'garden' will look like. I spent a good deal of time world-building - drawing a map, thinking about the history, geography, politics, culture and magic systems of my world. And had a rough idea of the journey my characters were going to go on. But as I wrote each chapter, it took unexpected turns as I 'discovered' what happened next.

I believe the same dichotomy applies to our spiritual / religious journeys. Unitarians used to be known as 'Rational Dissenters'. According to Wikipedia, "In the 18th century, one group of Dissenters became known as 'Rational Dissenters'. In many respects they were closer to the Anglicanism of their day than other Dissenting sects; however, they believed that state religions impinged on the freedom of conscience. They... desired an educated ministry and an orderly church, but they based their opinions on the Bible and on reason rather than on appeals to tradition and authority. They rejected doctrines such as original sin or Trinity, arguing that they were irrational. Rational Dissenters believed that Christianity and faith could be dissected and evaluated using the newly emerging discipline of science, and that a stronger belief in God would be the result."

This summary was generally true of Unitarianism in Britain right up to the 1960s, I think. However, since then, a more mystical strain has arrived and, while we still insist on the primacy of freedom of conscience, we have also found room for diverse spiritual paths, and are far less likely to "dissect and evaluate" our faith. We have found that there is room for imagination, for mystery, for embracing all kinds of spiritual practices from diverse faith traditions, for faith working alongside reason. And I think we are all the better for it.

Be Yourself

 This week's quote reads, "In a world where you can be anything... be yourself!"

I have blogged before about the importance of this, here. And am unapologetic about repeating part of that post, Brené Brown's definition of authenticity:

"Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we are supposed to be and embracing who we are. Choosing authenticity means:

* cultivating the courage to be imperfect, to set boundaries, and to allow ourselves to be vulnerable

*exercising the compassion that comes from knowing that we are all made of strength and struggle

* nurturing the connection and sense of belonging that can only happen when we believe that we are enough."

Which is the key to being yourself, in my opinion. It is also the work of a lifetime. Most of us will fall short of this ideal, for much of our lives. Because it is such a brave path to follow. It means that we no longer care about fitting in, being perfect. Being our genuine, real selves is what matters. It means living in consonance with our values and daring to take a stand on the things which matter to us, regardless of whether it will make us unpopular, get us into trouble.

The part of this week's quote that I struggle with is, "In a world where you can be anything". Because honestly, does anyone actually have the freedom to "be anything"? It may be true of a few brave souls, who fight against the restrictions imposed upon them by society, and come through triumphantly, leading the way for the rest of us. But most of us find it very difficult to resist those restrictions, and will choose instead to settle for what is a) possible and b) achievable without making ourselves social outcasts.

What we all can do, however, is to choose to support the brave few as they walk their lonely path. Who knows, our support may make all the difference and, if we are steadfast, it may make us brave enough to follow them, to stand up and become our own true selves.

What I am clear about is, the attempt must be made. Living authentically, living up to our values, is vitally important in today's society, where all kinds of minorities are persecuted, and where the actions of powerful, corrupt leaders have a huge negative impact on our world. We must stand up for what we believe in, and take the consequences. Perhaps that is what being yourself means, after all.

Being All In

 This week's quote reads, "You cannot go half 'all-out'."

With which sentiment I would thoroughly agree. I have always tried to be a committed sort of person - if I believe in something, I believe in it with my whole heart and want to align my life with that belief. Yet of course, I have often fallen short of that ideal, as most of us do, one time or another.

I admire people who are "all in" so much - they decide to stand behind (or up for) something they care deeply about, and nothing stops them from being a rock solid witness. Such people can change the world.

One example who comes to mind is Greta Thunberg - when she began her solitary school strike for climate change outside the Swedish Parliament seven years ago, she cannot have imagined the impact her action would have on so many people. She is entirely committed to working for climate justice and has made a massive difference to attitudes and awareness of this issue throughout the world (although I am sure she would say, far from enough - she is after action, not attitudes and awareness).

Being "all in" inevitably means going out of our comfort zones, not being "half-assed" but caring deeply enough about whatever it is to make a thorough-going commitment to ACT, in whatever ways are necessary, to make the change you desire happen. It means ignoring the reactions of the people around you, and remaining steadfast.

Yet so many things seem to get in the way of whole-hearted commitment - lack of time, lack of energy, conflicting calls on both time and energy, the temptation to take the easy route and let things slide. Most of us lack Greta's single-minded burning ambition, we fall short of total commitment. 

What do you care about enough to be single-minded, whole-hearted, completely committed to make the change you desire happen?

Living Your Dream

 This week's quote reads, "Do not dream your life, live your dream."

I believe there is room for both. It is good to have hopes and dreams about a better world, a better life, for ourselves and others. But it's also important to translate those dreams and hopes into action, to put them into practice.

Life is a process of becoming, evolving - we never actually get there, wherever "there" is. There is always more to do, more to learn, more to discover, more to experience, more to get excited about. But many of us fall into the trap of thinking, "If only I could do / achieve / be X, Y or Z, then I'll be happy, then I'll be content."

I believe there is an important difference between setting your sail to the future and looking forward to getting there, and having some idea of how might that happen, and ignoring all the joys of our present lives in favour of dreams about a yet-to-be perfect life, which will never, ever materialise. Living in the future in this way is such a waste of our lives, of our emotional energy. And it doesn't make us happy. So why do we do it?

Living in the present is living your dream. Deeply experiencing all the passing instances of awe and wonder and joy (as well as grief and sadness, anger and loss) is living your dream. The Transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau, who famously went to live in the woods for a while to deeply experience life, has a lot to say about this; as he explains, "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived."

He also wrote, "What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives within us." and "You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment."

Yet he also comes down firmly on the side of "live your dream", advising us, "If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."

So yes, dream your dreams - we all need something to work towards; but then put the foundations under them. For me, this is finding the right balance between dreaming your life and living your dream.