Everyone in New York is preparing for Hurricane Irene. I’ve been through some devastating hurricanes, including being in Durham in the midst of Hurricane Fran, right when it hit the coast of North Carolina. I’ve seen the destruction and deleterious effects of monsoons in Korea and even biked past a tornado in Kansas.
Albeit I believe New Yorkers are overreacting to Hurricane Irene, mostly because overreacting can ameliorate our lust for sensationalism. Don’t get me wrong, I have batteries, candles, canned food and champagne for days, but let’s be honest, it’s not going to hit us here like it’s hitting the coasts down South. Nevertheless, we’re gluttons for the dramatic.
One of the main supplies it is recommended we stock up on, is water. Because of this, I have water bottles, a couple of jugs, and I’ve also been drinking more water perhaps in anticipation of possible water shortage. It’s funny how our minds work. Again, I am reminded about how anticipation of something in the future, and knowledge of how things happened in the past can cause consternation. When we are in the moment, there is nothing to worry about, it is the future and past that causes malcontent.
Water. The hurricane brings a surplus of water bearing down, barreling down upon us, and yet we are at risk of a shortage of it. Today, on my 354th day (!!!) of giving away 1 thing a day to practice the nebulous concept of non-attachment in a tangible way, I am giving away some water glasses.
Because I used to be notoriously clumsy (though not so much now since I’ve been practicing mindfulness), I used to purchase items to accomodate this clumsiness. For example, my drinking glasses are extremely heavy duty. Ones that can take the way I place my glass on the table, ones that can take a couple of knock-overs. They can and have been dropped and have survived the fall.
I have about a dozen of them, and only use 4 on a consistent basis. They’re also oversized so I don’t have to keep filling them. I have 12 because a dozen glasses seemed like an appropriate number at the time of purchase. In the realm of intentionality, that logic makes no sense at all. So today, as Hurricane Irene approaches this city, I’m giving away precious containers for the liquid of life.
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[I created the 365 Release Project to practice non-attachment, letting go and change by giving away 1 thing a day for 1 year. The background, vision and guidelines to the 365 RELEASE project are here. The running list of everything I have released is here.]
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