Memory is the story you tell yourself. It’s selecting one position in time and space, one arrangement of vibrating atoms to represent what “you” (that mysterious observing consciousness) identify as you, then clustering multiple selections together and endowing the pattern with meaning. Of course, one thing that means is that your history isn’t fixed–different selection, different vibrations, different story possibilities far richer than any of us can imagine.
Atoms are mostly empty space, we are made of atoms, we are mostly emptiness, only slightly more dense than water, or air, or intergalactic space. All the more miraculous that we can use that ever-changing arrangement of energy from the beginning of our universe, call it stardust, to feel and think and love even for our moment. We need no elaborate education, no grand experience of the world to perform these miracles.
My cousin Roseann died last week. Here is a story I told myself about her: Once upon a time there were two cousins whose Slovak grandparents bought identical red-and-white Easter dresses in 1955. Many things happened, and sixty years later, one of them died. Over those years we grew apart, and I forgot to appreciate how, in the rare times we met as adults, Roseann always welcomed me with a loving smile and kind words, as though I were someone important. She was much better at that sort of miracle than I am. I remember Roseann’s story now in a new way. I find I hold her memory more tenderly than I held her living presence. She reminds me to cherish the warm touch of those who are alive today.
To experience more miracles I recommend: Your Atomic Self: The Invisible Elements That Connect You to Everything Else in the Universe, by Curt Stager (2014).
And online: The Radioactive Orchestra, “strengthening the bond between science and art” with music of atoms’ energetic frequencies.
I’m dedicating much of this summer to writing a sequel to the novel I wrote last year to take to the 2015 Willamette Writers Conference in August, so no Soul Painting or Qigong groups are on the schedule until fall, but I’ll gladly talk with you about individual consultations and upcoming groups anytime.
Wishing you many miracles and good stories,
Kristina