Patterns

Patterns, repeated lines and shapes that create graceful harmony, large and small. The lines of sand sculpted by the wind. Waves gliding across the surface of the bay making their way to shore, graceful curving arcs, culminating in froth of a white water, over and over again. The lines of birds in flight, the radiating petals of a flower, the way whiskers sprout from the mussel of a pet. All patterns. We’re used to the ones that are obvious, stripes, paisley, polka dots, but what about the ones that appear subtly, quietly, lusciously? We live in a universe of patterns as a way to remind ourselves of numerous different things. Music has patterns: verse, stanza, verse, etc. It’s comfortable and makes it easy to participate should we so choose. (Ever notice how uncomfortable you might feel hearing music of a genre that does not follow recognizable patterns, like progressive jazz or traditional Asian?) Literature follows patterns; I am sure cinema does too. We like patterns because in repetition there is a known and there is a potential beauty in their respective forms. We learn by patterns, repetition, over and over. A baby learns to speak by hearing the sounds again and again, to walk, to love or to hate. That which we perpetuate becomes a pattern, and we become comfortable with it because we know it. The Universe allows us to choose what we want to create. There is no right or wrong in the eyes of the Infinite, just choices. That’s why if you want to create pain and suffering, it is allowed. But maybe your choice is different. Maybe that isn’t what you really want. Then take a moment to stop and look at what patterns are being reflected in your life. Are they telling you something different than what you say you want? The beauty of this place is that because I am more isolated if you will, more connected to the earth, I find I am delving deeper into me, seeing patterns of behavior that I have picked up throughout my life that do not serve me and certainly do not express Jill at all! Yet somewhere along the line I have accepted these behaviors as mine and have lived by these choices as if that was all I had. As I look, barriers and brick walls come tumbling down and I find all emotions come to the surface to be seen and felt. And in the end, it is all my choice. It’s up to me what I choose to proliferate, how to live and how to love. I choose unconditional love, unconditional expression, unconditional life. Shocking? At first it sure feels so. At times I feel myself going into ‘confusion’ to distract myself from whatever layer is being called to the surface to be seen. I feel the discomfort that arises with each new realization thereof, but I do not choose distractions, so I keep going in. I choose clarity, vibrancy, expression and love, pure love. I dive I into truth telling, not for the first time and it certainly won’t be the last, but to me patterns, however they show up, offer the incredible beauty of opening further! I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to appreciate each one and to release it, becoming better for the experience of having remembered Who I Am. Wind patterns, the layers of the cliff bluffs, water as it recedes from the beach causing the sand to gather in lines of grey from soft dove to charcoal. Morning cloud formations. The veining on the wings of the dragonflies that are in such abundance here. All so very precious, so close to my heart and soul. Expressions of what lies Within.     all photographs taken and copyrighted by author, Jill Mollenhauer 2007