Loved this. Having gone from lake-nestled suburb to Vietnam to Thailand to Toronto to bland suburb to rural cottage this year, this is so relatable for me. There's a palpable change in who I am and how I feel based on where I am. Environment isn't everything but it does really matter.
And love the conclusion you close with: "the most important thing is not where you live, but how you live when you get there." As you say, nothing and nowhere will save you. Some places better, others worse. But ultimately it's your mindset and actions that determine your reality, no matter the external circumstance.
Beautiful, smooth writing as always. Thanks for sharing buddy.
Thanks Jack. Our ongoing conversations on our walks inspired a lot of this piece and really you deserve a lot of credit as my perennial writing from conversation partner.
And you’re so right. You can be in hell in a golden house.
Thank you again. Your comments are always a highlight of publishing
“It’s a surprise to most people, including myself, that they can actually have what they want.” I would love to hear you elaborate on this more some time, or at least share how your pursuit of this is going. Although I guess that’s a bit of what you’ve been doing all along.
Rick! That was a later addition to the piece but felt relevant and makes me happy you picked it out (:
Perhaps I will. I recently wrote 15,000 words as part of a Future Authoring writing program. The idea being: dream up a future where you could really have what you wanted and write about it in detail - if you treated yourself as someone you were responsible for caring for, unconditionally loved.
Writing every week is certainly one of those things for me, and getting to connect with people like you.
Thank you again and hope you have a lovely west coast weekend (:
There is something that troubled me today. I walked along a creek through ancient oak trees. It is an oasis when I visit my family. I nibble plants I know are edible. A leaf of sage. A sprig of young fennel. Lemonaid berry…I eat more than a nibble. I talk to an oak tree and I grieve. Now there is a sign. The trail is open 8am to 4:30pm. I think of the people in their grey offices who can’t walk before work. People and children who also can’t stroll in the twilight, my favorite time of day. And I spent time sitting and wondering about more travel or exploring the new country in which I now live and maybe living somewhere by a lake. I also felt how the river, likely missed the children. The sign says they are no longer allowed to swim in it. Your post speaks to this and my musings today…thank you.
This was poetic Terra (: thank you for your reflection here. Sounds like an oasis indeed. Very Mary Oliver of you!
Sometimes when I'm walking among the trees, I think of the fact I could be walking amidst the concrete cacophony and chaos of a busy city. I'm very blessed to live close to nature.
This is a great article about how our surroundings influence us! Tommy, you make a really interesting point that places can almost "speak" to us. I totally agree - being in nature definitely calms me down and makes me feel centered. A good reminder to be mindful of the spaces we spend time in.
Thank you for reading & the thoughtful comment Mo! Means a lot (:
Places certainly do speak to us. We control our emotions - to some extent - but we can also choose environments that bring out the emotions and states of being we want cultivate. Bit of nature, bit of nurture perhaps.
Hope the rest of your week is lovely. Thanks again!
Thanks for this peek into your life! I share the same feelings; the older I get, the more I long for deep connection with my surroundings. Busy cities make this difficult because I quickly loose connection with myself and the outside world. There's just too much going on.
Currently, I live in front of the Atlantic Ocean in Brazil. The constant sound of the crashing waves brings with it a feeling of peace. It's almost magical what nature does to us.
Thanks Danique for reading & the thoughtful note (:
So interesting on finding deep connections with your surroundings. The quieter the environment I find the clearer I can hear myself think, the more inner signal I have.
Nature really is magic. Sounds lovely. Hope you enjoy (:
Absolutely agree. Our surroundings surely impact how we think and perceive the world. It's a dance between people and places, each influencing and shaping the other. Although it's not the end game, but it matters what we make of our situation! Nice read!
Such a lovely, wise piece, Tommy. So much here resonates with me. I love this: "it’s worth noticing what surroundings speak of enchantment, cultivate the conditions you feel at home in, and aim toward them. Life is more malleable than we think." Thanks for the great read.
Oh, and I'm very curious about the big piece, and how that process has felt over the months. Looking forward to reading that one.
Thank you Rob. It’s so good to hear from you & your continual support really means a lot. Glad that bit resonated (:
Yes! I’m nervous but also excited to finally finish it. I imagine there will be lots of holes and I’ll struggle to feel it’s good enough, but it’s good to challenge the limits of my competence.
Hope your weekend is lovely. Keep well & keep in touch!
This is a topic I'm passionate about and it's wonderful reading something so well articulated. A few words stand out: "listening", "thinking about", and "noticing". To me, they help emphasize the reality that our ability to have what we want is, in many ways, determined by our level of awareness - making awareness one of the most critical "skills" to exercise.
Ah I love that point in awareness so much. Totally agree. I think the ability to direct your attention - awareness - is such an underrated skill.
Recently came across this quote from Mary Oliver which blew me away:
“Ten times a day something happens to me like this - some strengthening throb of amazement - some good sweet empathic ping and swell. This is the first, the wildest and the wisest thing I know: that the soul exists and is built entirely out of attentiveness.”
Thank you for reading - means a lot. Hope you have an awesome weekend (:
“Engineer the conditions for its emergence.” What a beautiful line. That’s all we can really do, isn’t it? We can’t force things into existence; almost everything is beyond our control. But we can control our effort. We can put our own lives in order so the right things can appear. Great article, Tommy. Thanks for the wisdom.
Loved this. Having gone from lake-nestled suburb to Vietnam to Thailand to Toronto to bland suburb to rural cottage this year, this is so relatable for me. There's a palpable change in who I am and how I feel based on where I am. Environment isn't everything but it does really matter.
And love the conclusion you close with: "the most important thing is not where you live, but how you live when you get there." As you say, nothing and nowhere will save you. Some places better, others worse. But ultimately it's your mindset and actions that determine your reality, no matter the external circumstance.
Beautiful, smooth writing as always. Thanks for sharing buddy.
Thanks Jack. Our ongoing conversations on our walks inspired a lot of this piece and really you deserve a lot of credit as my perennial writing from conversation partner.
And you’re so right. You can be in hell in a golden house.
Thank you again. Your comments are always a highlight of publishing
“It’s a surprise to most people, including myself, that they can actually have what they want.” I would love to hear you elaborate on this more some time, or at least share how your pursuit of this is going. Although I guess that’s a bit of what you’ve been doing all along.
Rick! That was a later addition to the piece but felt relevant and makes me happy you picked it out (:
Perhaps I will. I recently wrote 15,000 words as part of a Future Authoring writing program. The idea being: dream up a future where you could really have what you wanted and write about it in detail - if you treated yourself as someone you were responsible for caring for, unconditionally loved.
Writing every week is certainly one of those things for me, and getting to connect with people like you.
Thank you again and hope you have a lovely west coast weekend (:
There is something that troubled me today. I walked along a creek through ancient oak trees. It is an oasis when I visit my family. I nibble plants I know are edible. A leaf of sage. A sprig of young fennel. Lemonaid berry…I eat more than a nibble. I talk to an oak tree and I grieve. Now there is a sign. The trail is open 8am to 4:30pm. I think of the people in their grey offices who can’t walk before work. People and children who also can’t stroll in the twilight, my favorite time of day. And I spent time sitting and wondering about more travel or exploring the new country in which I now live and maybe living somewhere by a lake. I also felt how the river, likely missed the children. The sign says they are no longer allowed to swim in it. Your post speaks to this and my musings today…thank you.
This was poetic Terra (: thank you for your reflection here. Sounds like an oasis indeed. Very Mary Oliver of you!
Sometimes when I'm walking among the trees, I think of the fact I could be walking amidst the concrete cacophony and chaos of a busy city. I'm very blessed to live close to nature.
This is a great article about how our surroundings influence us! Tommy, you make a really interesting point that places can almost "speak" to us. I totally agree - being in nature definitely calms me down and makes me feel centered. A good reminder to be mindful of the spaces we spend time in.
Thank you for reading & the thoughtful comment Mo! Means a lot (:
Places certainly do speak to us. We control our emotions - to some extent - but we can also choose environments that bring out the emotions and states of being we want cultivate. Bit of nature, bit of nurture perhaps.
Hope the rest of your week is lovely. Thanks again!
I couldn't agree more! You too, have a lovely week!
so many quotes in here i wish i could keep in my pocket! always wonderful to come on and see your work.
Dahlia! Thank you for reading & taking the time to leave a kind note. Brought a smile to my face (:
Appreciate you
Thanks for this peek into your life! I share the same feelings; the older I get, the more I long for deep connection with my surroundings. Busy cities make this difficult because I quickly loose connection with myself and the outside world. There's just too much going on.
Currently, I live in front of the Atlantic Ocean in Brazil. The constant sound of the crashing waves brings with it a feeling of peace. It's almost magical what nature does to us.
Thanks Danique for reading & the thoughtful note (:
So interesting on finding deep connections with your surroundings. The quieter the environment I find the clearer I can hear myself think, the more inner signal I have.
Nature really is magic. Sounds lovely. Hope you enjoy (:
Absolutely agree. Our surroundings surely impact how we think and perceive the world. It's a dance between people and places, each influencing and shaping the other. Although it's not the end game, but it matters what we make of our situation! Nice read!
Thanks for reading & the thoughtful note Monika (: made my day
There’s definitely a co-creation between people and places. They exist in an ecology - each influencing the other. I love the word dance you used.
Appreciate your time here. Hope the rest of your week is lovely
"Ancient Greek poet Hesiod on virtue and the gods:"
My kinda deep cut!
Haha Hesiod certainly has some great lines. Works & Days is excellent
Such a lovely, wise piece, Tommy. So much here resonates with me. I love this: "it’s worth noticing what surroundings speak of enchantment, cultivate the conditions you feel at home in, and aim toward them. Life is more malleable than we think." Thanks for the great read.
Oh, and I'm very curious about the big piece, and how that process has felt over the months. Looking forward to reading that one.
Thank you Rob. It’s so good to hear from you & your continual support really means a lot. Glad that bit resonated (:
Yes! I’m nervous but also excited to finally finish it. I imagine there will be lots of holes and I’ll struggle to feel it’s good enough, but it’s good to challenge the limits of my competence.
Hope your weekend is lovely. Keep well & keep in touch!
Perfect timing 😊
Thank you Isabella! Appreciate you reading (:
Your words move my soul to rediscover the very nature of life, contentment, and expression thereof. Thank, Tommy. I always look forward to your voice.
Thank you James. Really means a lot coming from you & I always look forward to our conversations.
Keep well and keep in touch, my friend. Hope your weekend is blessed.
This is a topic I'm passionate about and it's wonderful reading something so well articulated. A few words stand out: "listening", "thinking about", and "noticing". To me, they help emphasize the reality that our ability to have what we want is, in many ways, determined by our level of awareness - making awareness one of the most critical "skills" to exercise.
Aaron! So good to hear from you man
Ah I love that point in awareness so much. Totally agree. I think the ability to direct your attention - awareness - is such an underrated skill.
Recently came across this quote from Mary Oliver which blew me away:
“Ten times a day something happens to me like this - some strengthening throb of amazement - some good sweet empathic ping and swell. This is the first, the wildest and the wisest thing I know: that the soul exists and is built entirely out of attentiveness.”
Thank you for reading - means a lot. Hope you have an awesome weekend (:
Resonates a lot , thanks for this piece :))
Thank you for reading, Patrick (:
Hope your weekend is lovely
“Engineer the conditions for its emergence.” What a beautiful line. That’s all we can really do, isn’t it? We can’t force things into existence; almost everything is beyond our control. But we can control our effort. We can put our own lives in order so the right things can appear. Great article, Tommy. Thanks for the wisdom.
Ah Emily, it’s always exciting to see your name in the comments (: thank you for still reading my work
I love how you worded that. We can’t always control our emotions or feelings but can create conditions that bring out our best, more often than not.
Effort is beautiful.
Hope your weekend is lovely!!