The Setup
When I was young I played with cardboard boxes for hours, making them into Barbie houses. It was all about the setup, carefully designing and placing furniture, wallpaper, clothes and shoes in each room. Barbie was never active. The only thing she ever did was stick her chest out even further and sit sway- backed in a plastic chair, as if she was too good to touch it. I never saw her enjoy her home.
Now as a grown up, I look around and notice most people are managing their lives, but not many are really living. We carefully articulate, masterfully manipulate, caffein-ate, hydrate and medicate. Why have we abandoned our need to participate? The job of arranging life has taken up all of our time.
This season I want to remember that while the set up and lead up are great, if we don't stop and simply live, we'll end up with carefully designed, empty cardboard boxes.
Audra Krell 