"If we take a certain amount of gold and decide to gild a number of objects with it, we must know, or calculate, exactly what number of objects can be gilded with this quantity of gold. If we try to gild a greater number,……………..”
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One time Caruso, the great operatic tenor, was struck with stage fright. He said his throat was paralyzed due to spasms caused by intense fear which constricted the muscles of his throat. Perspiration poured copiously down his face. He was ashamed because in a few minutes he had to go out on the stage, yet he was shaking with fear and trepidation. He said, "They will laugh at me. I can't sing." Then he shouted in the presence of those behind the stage, "The Little Me wants to strangle the Big Me within."
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When we become aware of the expansion of our outer bodies, we pull our stomachs in and TIGHTEN the core. But how about becoming aware of the expansion of our INNER bodies? If we allow the body to "balloon" open, the air rushes in and fills the spaces as nature intended. One can feel fat, but fat inside. The body now feels like an open column.
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"A very old Chinese Taoist story describes a farmer in a poor country village. He was considered very well-to-do, because he owned a horse which he used for plowing and for transportation. One day his horse ran away. All his neighbors exclaimed how terrible this was, but the farmer simply said, "Maybe."
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A paragraph in Doris Lessing's book "The Four-Gated City" has lingered in my mind for quite some time. It seems we are in an era of creating our own image of ourselves to accomplish ANY goal. Pragmatism preaches that man can make the world as he chooses, just as long as it is PROFITABLE in our lives. The sense of entitlement reigns. Do whatever works for YOU!
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The Zen practice called "the way of the ice cube."
Adapted from "Nothing Special" by Charlotte Joko Beck
Much of the time humans are running around like ice cubes - bumping into one another. To protect ourselves, we FREEZE as hard as we can and hope that when we collide with others, they will shatter before we do. We might have a drink to SOFTEN US UP, but that is only temporary. We freeze again.
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"There is an old story of a boilermaker who was hired to fix a huge steamship boiler system that was not working well. After listening to the engineer's description of the problems and asking a few questions, he went to the boiler room. He looked at the maze of twisting pipes,
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PROJECTION - these are the three ways - it’s your choice!
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The shell of an egg is a delicate thing. The vocal cords are also delicate. Press too hard and they crack open. Who cares? The singer just rushes ahead and breaks the shell...……BUT the insides, yolk and all, fall out. As a result, hoarseness, pitch problems and discomfort develop. It also hurts! That was PLAN A. Now what?
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WAH, WAH, WAH - WEH, WEH, WEH.
These are strange sounds. They have become the new means of communication in contemporary singing. Instead of hearing the words, we see the contortions that the singer goes through to PRONOUNCE them.
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"Plans are of little importance, but planning is essential."
Winston Churchill