| | I guess at this point in my life I'm considered a character... I think I have GOOD CHARACTER, though I also have become one. My values are basically pretty traditional and I'm a very warm and nurturing personality, hence most of my work being in the social services. I balance out the counseling work and teaching kids by putting tools in my hands and remodeling homes.
The people stuff is often complex and sometimes powerful. I listen well and have a knack for hearing the heart behind the words. I have an affinity for those of us seeking transition to something healthier and happier. Who isn't, right?
This role feels like it's the most important thing I have to offer. It's an honor to create an environment where someone feels safe enough to share their truth and pain.
However, don't allow me to create the illusion that I am Mahatma Ghandi or kinfolk to Mother Teresa... I am also just a goofy, playful monkey with a smartass streak installed on the east coast years ago as a survival tool. People tell me I'm funny, quick-witted, insightful and often dig the residual East Coast PERSONA that I thought I shed years ago but apparently still shows up.
Working with my hands has always been important to me. Carpentry is such a practical skill to have, reshaping environments and creating sacred places that bring people added comfort or aesthetic appeal. Obviously there is some thinking involved in designing structural integrity but mostly it's just "doing".
My life has been this orchestrated mix of interest and passions. I feel like all of them play an important role in maintaining my well-being and supporting my personal growth. I have teaching experience, but I find kids even when it's not work related.
At a party, I might be found on the floor playing legos with a couple 5 year olds and loving it. Most the time adults are ok too! BUT Kids are always so FRESH and ALiVe. I love that, and it keeps the 5 year old in me alive as well.
Being outside seems vital, rain or shine. Working, maybe a hike in the woods, going off the beaten path on a regular basis... Sometimes, if I'm fortunate, that turns into an exploration of cliffs, caves, wildlife and other natural phenomena. I like to make subtle nature shrines out of found objects while hiking, sometimes I bring them home and create something in my space.
If there's a rock ledge to climb, I'm gone! The climb itself is always exciting and the view from the top is a bonus. I'll often hang and watch sunset then have to climb down in the dark, part of the fun and the risk. An exercise in trusting myself, trusting my body and my judgement.
I sometimes drum at community events, art openings, poetry readings, trance dances or in schools with kids. When I'm not drumming, I'm dancing and when I'm in love, I'm floating. The people I love will clearly feel it. I have excellent communication skills and the emotional strength to speak from my heart. I am a very strong person that floats on the wings of vulnerablitiy.
Someday, I would love to find a sweety who can see into my heart, recognize my gifts and embrace the man I am. My intention in writing this profile is to offer a glimpse into my dream and draw a beautiful spirit into my life.
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The Invitation
Oriah Mountain Dreamer
It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dream, for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shrivelled and closed from fear of further pain.
I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it, or fade it, or fix it.
I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own; if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic, remember the limitations of being human.
It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself. If you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul. If you can be faithless and therefore trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see Beauty even when it is not pretty every day. And if you can source your own life from its presence.
I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine, and still stand at the edge of the lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, 'Yes.'
It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone and do what needs to be done to feed the children.
It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the centre of the fire with me and not shrink back.
It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away.
I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.
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