The mulberry tree has an unrivalled allure and presence. Unmistakable and instantly recognisable amongst other trees, larger in stature with those wonderful leaves that facilitate the manufacture of the finest of silk. Mention mulberry trees and one can almost taste that sweet and sour juice and remember the purple stains on shirts and fingers and a parents frustrated sigh - you've been eating mulberry's again. Little wonder mulberry's are rarely found in the fruit and vegetable section of your supermarket. And yet beneath the mild consternation was their own fond memories of mulberry trees and the delightful simplicity of childhood.
Today in the hustle and bustle of responsibility and commitment these simpler times can seem almost foreign and unconnected to who we are adults. Sometimes it seems pressure exerts and overwhelms from every facet of life till the inner child in each of us screams " let me out, I've had enough"
I want, I want I need my happy place ! Where for art thou my happy place.
Do I even have one. Yes you do, we all do, undeniable and irrefutable despite the ragged tapestries of time. Buried deep within countless deadlines and the perpetual push to make the grade, albeit there is a place in each of us or a self actualising moment where we are totally free and at peace.
A mother once said to her kids, "Go outside and play" as if it was something laborious and obligatory, perhaps forgetting that kids know this instinctively.
Oh and by the way I was too busy to attend that relaxation seminar. Relaxation, sadly something many of us need to re-learn, no longer a natural ability, but something we need to schedule into the the day with every other thing. And yet how do we keep up the pace, relentless and unabated without the occasional break or the alternative stress related flu or peptic ulcer which forces us to take a break anyway, Have you ever heard of a child who had to retire because of burnout or another stress related illness. Yet most of us receive 4-5 weeks of annual leave per year where we can take that break more revered than money, and yet meaningless without.
But have you ever noticed that even 5 weeks is never enough, as the first week is spent resting to the point where you can replenish your energy bank enough to enjoy the remainder of your holiday, before preparing to go back to work. And then sometimes with your well deserved inertia comes the unseasonal and unbelievable cold or flu. No it is never enough, and it's definitely not fair, and yet there is an alternative, buried beneath responsibility and maturities repression. All it costs is a moment to rediscover those things that were meaningful in the past and so wonderfully and blessedly present centred. Those moments of perfect peace, joy and tranquility where we could simply be, before we were forced to become. Where we were all that we ever needed to be - Free !
