Comments on: Uncomfortable http://www.magpiedays.com/2010/01/uncomfortable/ Hoarding the shiny moments. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:59:31 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: rswb http://www.magpiedays.com/2010/01/uncomfortable/comment-page-1/#comment-4646 rswb Mon, 01 Feb 2010 11:57:33 +0000 http://www.magpiedays.com/?p=510#comment-4646 Aah, okay. I understand you then, I think, I just wouldn't use the same vocabulary (with the manifesting of destiny etc). I would consider it more a question of proactivity, or actively pursuing what you're after without feeling the need to be shy about it or hide behind feelings of potential inadequacy or whatever. It occurred to me some years ago that I am rarely this proactive myself, but then when I am (and the main example of it that I always think of is back in the olden days when I was chasing Reto around and forcing him to fall in love with me. Not that it was such a huge task, just that it was me who realised first that we were hopelessly in love and I had to hit him over the head a few times before he noticed as well. And normally I would never have been quite so stubborn in a relatively new relationship, but the constraints of time and geography that we were facing made me really kind of unrelenting. Sounds nice, doesn't it?) really good things tend to come of it. For me, though, the real joy of looking back on things like that is to be able to say "how good am I? I made such a good decision and behaved in a fairly uncharacteristic way and got something that was great. Yay for me". Which might all be a bit self-congratulatory, but it's nicer to have myself to give the credit to than to have to give it all to the universe. Go me. And you. Aah, okay. I understand you then, I think, I just wouldn’t use the same vocabulary (with the manifesting of destiny etc). I would consider it more a question of proactivity, or actively pursuing what you’re after without feeling the need to be shy about it or hide behind feelings of potential inadequacy or whatever. It occurred to me some years ago that I am rarely this proactive myself, but then when I am (and the main example of it that I always think of is back in the olden days when I was chasing Reto around and forcing him to fall in love with me. Not that it was such a huge task, just that it was me who realised first that we were hopelessly in love and I had to hit him over the head a few times before he noticed as well. And normally I would never have been quite so stubborn in a relatively new relationship, but the constraints of time and geography that we were facing made me really kind of unrelenting. Sounds nice, doesn’t it?) really good things tend to come of it. For me, though, the real joy of looking back on things like that is to be able to say “how good am I? I made such a good decision and behaved in a fairly uncharacteristic way and got something that was great. Yay for me”. Which might all be a bit self-congratulatory, but it’s nicer to have myself to give the credit to than to have to give it all to the universe. Go me. And you.

]]> By: Jennifer http://www.magpiedays.com/2010/01/uncomfortable/comment-page-1/#comment-4530 Jennifer Sun, 24 Jan 2010 08:40:58 +0000 http://www.magpiedays.com/?p=510#comment-4530 Robyn - I think some of this post is something I've wanted to get off my chest for about two years. I read some shiny-happy faerie dust blogs and every time somebody wrote about manifesting their destiny I kind of wanted to puke. For the reasons stated above. But it seems uncharitable to launch into a tirade against something that brings people optimism and seems to help them go for what they want. And some people swear by it, so why go all negative on something people swear by. Like I said, it just seems rude. But still. I'm allergic to faerie dust. And baby dust. And "manifesting your destiny" when right now I mean right. now. some kid just died from persistent diarrhea. Diarrhea, for god's sake, in 2010! Manifest that, I always wanted to say. So I sent off my application for the poetry workshop. I guess the things I did differently were being clear and public about wanting it, and about wanting it a lot. I uncharacteristically linked to the specific workshop in my blog (twice, even) - I'm usually cagey about things like that. [The thinking going, shoot, at least two poets who actually live in Mass and are better poets than me (Poet Mom has published a full length collection and Durable Pigments just rocks) read my blog now and then. What if they follow the link and apply? They'd totally get in before me?] But I actually very consciously decided to be open about this and when I hit the "attach link" button I though, well, let's see how this goes. Let's be generous about this. Is that manifesting? I don't know. It was different for me though, to be so open. I believe I got in because I got in. I actually think I'm the perfect candidate for a workshop - I think my poetry clearly demonstrates that I have talent but that I could really benefit from guidance. I'm good enough to have promise and good enough to know where I need work and I think I'm at that level where some mentoring could have huge payoffs. So I got in because I got it. This was the first time I was really out there about wanting something though, and I used the correlation - which does not imply causality - as a jumping off point to get some things about The Secret off my chest. Robyn – I think some of this post is something I’ve wanted to get off my chest for about two years. I read some shiny-happy faerie dust blogs and every time somebody wrote about manifesting their destiny I kind of wanted to puke. For the reasons stated above. But it seems uncharitable to launch into a tirade against something that brings people optimism and seems to help them go for what they want. And some people swear by it, so why go all negative on something people swear by. Like I said, it just seems rude. But still. I’m allergic to faerie dust. And baby dust. And “manifesting your destiny” when right now I mean right. now. some kid just died from persistent diarrhea. Diarrhea, for god’s sake, in 2010! Manifest that, I always wanted to say.

So I sent off my application for the poetry workshop. I guess the things I did differently were being clear and public about wanting it, and about wanting it a lot. I uncharacteristically linked to the specific workshop in my blog (twice, even) – I’m usually cagey about things like that. [The thinking going, shoot, at least two poets who actually live in Mass and are better poets than me (Poet Mom has published a full length collection and Durable Pigments just rocks) read my blog now and then. What if they follow the link and apply? They'd totally get in before me?] But I actually very consciously decided to be open about this and when I hit the “attach link” button I though, well, let’s see how this goes. Let’s be generous about this. Is that manifesting? I don’t know. It was different for me though, to be so open.

I believe I got in because I got in. I actually think I’m the perfect candidate for a workshop – I think my poetry clearly demonstrates that I have talent but that I could really benefit from guidance. I’m good enough to have promise and good enough to know where I need work and I think I’m at that level where some mentoring could have huge payoffs. So I got in because I got it.

This was the first time I was really out there about wanting something though, and I used the correlation – which does not imply causality – as a jumping off point to get some things about The Secret off my chest.

]]> By: rswb http://www.magpiedays.com/2010/01/uncomfortable/comment-page-1/#comment-4504 rswb Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:19:08 +0000 http://www.magpiedays.com/?p=510#comment-4504 I don't really get this post. If you're uncomfortable with the idea of asking the universe for something and don't really believe in it, then why do it? Isn't it enough to acknowledge that you write poetry and you wanted to get into this course and so you sent off your submission, and you were good enough to get in on your own merit without the interference or help of anything bigger? Is "asking the universe" for something a euphemism for wanting something? Do you have to actually do anything apart from acknowledge that you want whatever in order to ask the universe for it? Is it a substitute for religion (praying)? It all seems a bit superfluous to (a non-believer like) me. Didn't you get in because you deserved to? I don’t really get this post. If you’re uncomfortable with the idea of asking the universe for something and don’t really believe in it, then why do it? Isn’t it enough to acknowledge that you write poetry and you wanted to get into this course and so you sent off your submission, and you were good enough to get in on your own merit without the interference or help of anything bigger?

Is “asking the universe” for something a euphemism for wanting something? Do you have to actually do anything apart from acknowledge that you want whatever in order to ask the universe for it? Is it a substitute for religion (praying)?

It all seems a bit superfluous to (a non-believer like) me. Didn’t you get in because you deserved to?

]]> By: kristen http://www.magpiedays.com/2010/01/uncomfortable/comment-page-1/#comment-4492 kristen Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:56:01 +0000 http://www.magpiedays.com/?p=510#comment-4492 I love this post. And I couldn't agree with you more. I think our minds might work in a similar fashion. And, congrats on the workshop... I'm going to ask the universe to make sure you have a great time while you are there!! I love this post. And I couldn’t agree with you more. I think our minds might work in a similar fashion.

And, congrats on the workshop… I’m going to ask the universe to make sure you have a great time while you are there!!

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