On the importance of being here and there

The hand that has been here for a while equals the primal rush of blood to your head when you first opened your very eyes to this World.  I guess you know that already, dude, I am almost sure.  But hey, listen carefully, today is your lucky day, don’t forget that, today is the best day of your life, the past is gone and the future unwritten so focus clearly in the now and wave your hand, feel how every cell which is you is alive as well…, and kicking, fell your body, your brain working overtime, you soul expanding all your energy towards the universe.  

It’s high time for a new revelation, get ready for the ride:

Absurb thing that really really matters nº 11

When you think are here you are as well there.  And that’s alright, unless you get it all wrong and take for granted the whole game of Creation.  You play here, yes, but you are really there, so there is here, and here is…, well, seems to be here but is nowhere because it’s a fake, a mighty hoax, but a wonderful and lovely hoax nevertheless.  So what are we expected to do?, you might ask, well, nothing really and everything you feel like at the same time, that’s the never-ending paradox of being born into this world.  You are here but you are really there, you belong to both places for a time but the you who is really you knows better, the answer to this conundrum cannot be exposed in words, languages cannot grasp even the gist of it all.  

Get drunk, it may help, or don’t, it’s a waste of time after all.

Myself I need just now Chicken Curry, so I’d better call it a day and have a rest…

More from me in a fortnight

On the importance of growing a new set of eyes

This is just a non-real study of the heart.  You see, I’ve been silent for a life but it feels like seconds in my mind.  Some days you feel like dying, others you just die, without drama, without regret, in a glorious, even positive, sleigh of hands, or rather in a sort of minimalistic way.  The poet in you appears out of the blue to state effortlessly your true self.  Just that, no big deal, my pal.  When you die to the world you start living in a different realm, your heart may keep on beating (that its function after all) and you realise that you are not there anymore but you ARE there in a new flesh and blood, in a new mind, with a new set of eyes for you to relish the wonders of the world.

This is what I want to share with you today…

Absurd thing that really really matters nº 10

The eyes

in you

are not you

but nevertheless

what you

decide to see

with those eyes

is what you’ll become

a second afterwards

as matter of fact.

See you in a couple of weeks with more wisdom from within.

On the importance of accepting the life you are leading

My ex-wife, Aleesha, came to me yesterday and, with a dismal and forlorn gaze in her eyes abruptly spat it out: "Daniel, my life is shit".  I kind of got caught unawares and just gave her a warm hug, then I just said, "welcome to my world".

Let's put this clear from the very beginning, my life has been shit since I have any glimpse of recollection.  Put other words, my life has ALWAYS been shit.  Maybe that's the reason why I decided to become both a Teacher and a Poet.  But that's a long story, and long stories are to be told little by little.

Therefore, just now I wanted to share with you all one more revelation, this time in the shape of a poem.  I hope you enjoy and get some wisdom out of it.  This is how it goes...

Absurd thing that really really matters nº 9

Accept your life even if it sucks, after all is the only life you have...

THE STORY SO FAR

by Daniel Winterbottom, poet of the things that matter

for my ex-wife Aleesha, who came from Indonesia to share a new light with me

This is my story so far,

this is my life,

utterly normal,

common, ugly and sad,

my life,

just that,

nothing special or exciting,

nothing to write home about,

nothing, really, worth mentioning,

a dull, regular-size, pathetic life,

my life,

my story,

this is what and who I am,

this is it,

trust me,

there is nothing else behind,

just a normal, common life,

my life,

my story,

my dearest heart of hearts,

and the rest is still unwritten

and it  may be not so common,

so utterly dismal,

but I couldn’t care less,

trust me,

it is not that I like what and who I am,

it is more simple than that,

it is that I am what and who I am,

just that,

and I write poems

and I drink beer

as I leave my past behind,

but what about you, bro?

would you care to tell me

the story of  your

common, sad, pathetic life

so far?

I lend you my ear,

as always,

and I’ll always lend you

my heart.

On the importance of being born into this world

I promise I am (almost) human...

I was born in Sligo a cold Winter night of 1973, I was born there because I didn’t have anything else to do or go that very night and therefore I found it appropriate to get born once and for all.  I was just wasting my time in the netherworld and thus I said to myself “you, wake up, and do something, have a life, get a god, learn to play the lute…) 

My father, the head honcho of a folksy band, was at the time in a gig in Galway but when he heard about my unexpected arrival, left his bass guitar and jumped into the car to get to the hospital asap.  My mother, a Spanish emigrant in the Emerald country since she was 21, was caught by surprise in her sleep.  She was pregnant, alright, but I was not suppose to come so soon, but, well, I just got bored and wanted to have my share of worldly experience just like everybody else.  I quickly made a few phone calls, got to talk with the big Dude up there and finally was given the go-ahead to start afresh in Ireland.  A wonderful country all in all, even today I do miss my land with all my heart.

That’s the way how I got to be born all of a sudden, how I was located into this crazy world of us.  And to be sincere, from my first minute on earth, I learnt how to be human the hard way, since I slipped out the Doctor’s hands and into de freezing floor in the twinkling of an eye.  Nice way to start, don’t you think? With a mighty bump on your head, a hideous red mountain-like bump just in the middle of your bald head.  Goodness me!  That was a superb ride into the unknown and the unknown was hard and menacing, I can tell you that much.

Therefore, I got to learn my first “absurd thing that really really matters”, which is:

Absurd thing that really really matters nº 8

Never hit your own head with anything hard.

The thing is that hard things hurt.  Soft things may hurt as well, that’s for sure, but they are inoffensive when compared to the hard stuff our material world is made of.  Have a go, take a feather and attack yourself viciously, so savagely as you might, you’ll see you’ll come out of the experience unscathed (other wise you are definitely a lost case to this world), but imagine you do the same with a sledgehammer.  I know it’s obvious…, but it seems that we never learn this lesson right.  We keep on banging our head onto the manifold surfaces of this hard reality we call “the outside world”.  

And into the bargain and which is even more important, this lesson applies as well to feelings. Didn’t you realise?  You should know by now, dude, you should really know.  Hard feelings hurt, soft feelings heal.  But we tend to have our hearts and minds choked to the brim with the hardest feelings we can treasure: hate, fear, anger, anxiety… 

At least I got this first lesson clear my very first minute on earth…, but I was too young to realise, of course, and was unable to remember this until I came, as well quite unexpectedly, into my 17^th birthday (one day I was 14 and just afterwards I was 17, missing all of a sudden the rest of my birthday presents, which was really a bore!!!).

But that is another story and today I do not have time to keep on going.  I’d better now stop my rambling; I have more serious concerns to deal with…

I’ll be back to you anon.

On flying without wings and loving the enemy within

After the dim silence, my frail voice can be heard in the distance again. For a while, a light was lit right between my very eyes. Therefore, I did think I was to be forever enlightened. But then, the dismal winds of sadness turned up totally unexpected to wreak havoc and turn apart the seams of stars that protected my life within its brand-new sheath. I was left stark-naked again. And I cried for a million years and the salty flavour of my cheeks brought a hungry animal near me to lick me clean of all my sins. And I was, after all, on my feet once more, ready to hit the road and face the world alike. And thus a new secret was fully revealed to me, and here I am passing you the information. Hope you can make some sense out of it…

Absurd thing that really really matters nº 7

You can fly,
brother,
you were always
made to fly,
it is just that
you prefer to deny
the beauty
in you,
the starry skies
that pervade
your very soul;
but look,
nothing can prevent
you from reaching
up and starting to fly.
You can fly,
no wings required,
wings are for less
sublime creatures
than you are,
and you, precious
heart of hearts,
you are the light
that never fades,
the beacon in the night
that always shines
as far as far can be.
And when you fly,
brother,
when you fly
you love,
no matter how,
you are love itself
flying around
without wings,
you are the first man
treading on earth,
the ultimate weapon,
Achilles’ last stand.
And when you fly
and you love
the enemy within
becomes your
very soul.
And there’s no stopping
you from there,
the sky is the limit.

Therefore, brother of mine,
learn to fly
without wings
and love
the enemy within
and life will
be as sweet
as the sweetest
of lives can be.

I’ll be waiting
for you
to walk together,
hand in hand,
into our promised land.

Nothing else in front,
even less behind.

The hideous snot in the sky and the pig that could fly

There can't be no doubt about this fact: there is always an equal amount of vanity to the reality of the frog that always intended to run free from home. No wonder you are now as spurious as a spurious potato can be. Come on in, man, a final spurt is what is required to become one of the hollow men, half man, half straw..., beautiful, isn't it?

An so, crossing the river, I came to the conclusion and the conclusion came to me.

Let's cut a long story short:

Absurd thing that really really matters nº 6

Whenever a wall is about to fall on you, there is another wall to be erected right within your heart. Therefore, your very soul will never crumble and your very eyes will shine on forever. What a relief, right? That should take a heavy burden off your shoulders. You can always foster your crazy ideas come hell or high water, stick to your guns and all. Your most humble skirmish will see you through fields of emptiness without a complaint being uttered. Welcome home, no wall will be again higher than your mighty shadow at evening, no door too wide, no window too shallow.

Let me take your hand now that you know how it is to find your inner strenth to carry on.

I love you so, you love me so, so let's love and toast our new found victory in champagne.

Tomorrow is a new day and today, whoever knows.

One for the road

As the saying goes "one more for the road and you'll turn into a hairy toad"..., and the saying, needless to say, is always right. Remember to give the devil his due or you'll be facing serious problems here, brother...

this is the final truth, you are an avestruz.

Today's revelation comes loud and easy. This is as clear as it gets as it is specially FOR YOU.

Listen well, stay put and do not forget to turn the lights off when you are done.

Absurd thing that really really matters nº 5

Whenever you really put your foot in it, try to use Litvaski's method of "eeeerrr, sorry, not my fault, I've just arrived and the mess was already here": give a blank stare, mumble some fairly incoherent sounds, show some of your most disgusting spittle in the corner of your mouth and smile, ALWAYS SMILE. Then, as calmly as possible, you are to stand on your very own feet, breathe deeply and utter the following sentence "C'mon, one for the road just to be properly loaded". The rest is no longer on your dirty hands. The Universe will take care of the whole thing from then onwards, the Universe and, this is not to be discarded, maybe the Police. All you have to do is to apply your buttocks to some firm surface and get yourself some cold beer. As easy as that, there's nothing else to do here, really, do not let yourself be fooled again with imaginary pleasures. All there is to be concerned about is the road ahead and the road behind. Therefore, if you decide to make a last stand where you are, the road will become your home and your home your very Hell on earth. Is there anything else to pray for in this world? I guess not.
This is absurd, yes, totally mumbo-jumbo, I know, a scrumptious snack of reallity, that is. Being as unlucky at cards as unlucky I am in love, there is nothing else for me to say. At leat for another two weeks.
Yes, you expected to get something out of my speech, you, fool, there is nothing to expect. What you see is what you get, I've told you so a thousand times or more.

Time to get back to..., I might as well stay here till dawn. But well, I feel like sleeping myself to death....

Please do not bang the door close and don't bother to say goodbye, will you.