Excerpt
This excerpt is a chapter from the Desert Soulscape.
Simplicity
A condition of complete simplicity
(Costing not less than everything.)
T.S. Eliot
***
In the desert water is a gift. When it arrives, the air fills with surprising birdsong and the land erupts in robes of flowers. Escape-pod seeds, dormant for years, await the first generous rains to burst forth and bloom.
And all this is more beautiful, because it is not an everyday event.
What is it you truly need?
***
I sit watching the sunrise by Balanced Rock in Arches National Park in Utah. The steely morning air hints not at all of the heat that will follow. In this moment, it is just the bare shape of the rock and me, its every crevice slowly revealed as the sun begins to lift from behind the horizon.
A thermos of tea, earmuffs, a pad to sit on. In the desert morning, joy grows in my spirit like wildflowers, as rocks come alive, take shape, run red. Like blood and gold. Perhaps I can be more present, because in the desert the earth is more present--each thing perceived more clearly than in other regions where contours are masked by vegetation. I am somehow more aware ofmore visible tomyself.
Absence of clutterand the capacity to hold something backare what make the desert beautiful. The empty space in a sculpture is as important, or more important, than the clay or stone that remains. As I sit here, I know that the American Dream as it exists today will not survive the desert. This unquenchable desire for morefor greater things and constant growthseems to have no place in this unforgiving land. Las Vegas, in the end, will be no match for the Mojave. Over time, the essential desert earth will refuse to sustain it.
This land, after all, is beautiful, but that beauty is precarious. Like a long pause after a bar of music, or a Zen-styled room free of any extraneous object, its grandeurand its survivalis predicated on restraint.
A student of mine once told me the desert reminded her of a beautiful woman without any makeup or artifact, just fine bones. And I think this is true. Less is more, where there is beauty at heart.
What is it that I need?
Simplicity and necessity, the lack of clutter or excess, bring us closer to something vibrant and alive. The prickly cactus bears life-giving juice at its center. Life without illusions, based on simple needs, can yield a tremendous inner riches.
We come to the desert, in part, because we want to know who we are without all our external paraphernalia. This is a profoundly spiritual way to live, in the lean, bone marrow of life. The way light streams upward on a bare rock face, like melting gold--nothing standing between it and the simple form of the rock.
All things are eventually illuminated in the desert. The light scours all. There is nowhere to hide.
In the desert we get clear on what truly matters to uswater, food, shelter, love, family, community, meaningful work. The rest blisters and burns away under the relentless heat of day, under nights exploding with stars.
Freed from excess, our lives can begin to mirror the exquisiteness of a night-blooming saguaro. In the dead of dark, with no person to witness it, the cactus will unfurl a single, lavish bloom, the bleached bone of moonlight and the fragrance of musk. Lesser long-nosed bats rise up and seek her out, their long tongues licking up the syrup. This is sweetness so miraculous, so rare and astonishing, the bats will travel thousands of miles, often leaving their pups, to feed.
This is the way of the desert: beauty that waits, lavishness that is restrained. Moments of exploding sensuality, bordered by long stretches of severity that dont take away from lifes bounty, but highlight it
turn a simple sip of water into a moment of grace.
What is it you truly need?
Simplicity Exploration
Create a desert corner in your house. You might find some interesting rocks, cacti, or a miniature sandbox to decorate. The main purpose, however, is that this particular area be as uncluttered as possible. The kind of place that feels serene and understated.
If you have children, tell them about this special space. Let them know any member of the household is welcome to visit, but mustnt leave anything behind. It is to remain mess-free. If your home doesnt allow for this, find a space somewhere in your neighborhood where you experience ease and simplicity.
After spending time in your serene space, write your responses to these questions:
What do you notice about your internal terrain when you are in a clutter-free space?
How can you incorporate more simplicity into your life?
What might you need to let go of?
What is it you truly need?