Satygraha by Philip Glass

When I die, if anyone does an autopsy of my brain, everything I have listed in this blog would come falling out of my head--a real diary of things I have loved and been inspired by and paid attention to over all my many years...
This morning my friend Dyan told me how much she enjoyed the dance things I have posted and she said she preferred dance to opera...Which got me thinking about one of the most exciting unconventional operas I had ever seen (in fact I saw it two days in a row I loved it so much--many years ago but I remember it like it was yesterday). I am talking about Philip Glass' opera Satygraha, loosely based on the life of Mahatma Gandhi and the concept of nonviolent resistance, which I saw at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City.

I would never put it to justice by trying to describe it but I can say that the whole set is made out of newspaper and paper mache, the set, puppets and costumes are beyond gorgeous, the music is sublime (some people hate Philip Glass--I love him and find him so meditative and soothing), and this was one of the most all encompassing, visual, musical, dance, experiences I have witnessed and enjoyed in theatre...I wish I could tell you it is being performed again soon but I don't know of any upcoming events--just watch for it in the future and in the meantime, watch the video for a little introduction...

Favorite Children's Books

I always like to visit libraries in new places--just being around books gives me such a warm, cozy feeling, even if I don't open them up. Oh, the possibilities! I found myself in the Rockland Library the other day and wandered into the children's section. That's when I found a book that got my heart beating as if my childhood was just yesterday: The Red Ballooon. I can still remember vividly every single page--below are some of the ones that got my heart beating faster. The book actually comes from a wonderful academy award-winning film which A.O. Scott, film critic of the New York Times (who I don't always agree with), called "a masterpiece of simplicity."

And then, just the way it goes, the very next day on my way to a wedding in Vermont, I came across another of my favorite children's books at a friend's house in New Hampshire--synchronicity! This book, The Lonely Doll, was unusual because again, it was all (black and white) photographs. My sister and I loved the characters--two teddy bears and a doll--and their friendship. This book hasn't withstood the test of time in the same way as it has a male chauvinistic bent to it but it still touches me in a deep way as if my childhood was yesterday...And now for the laugh, just googled it to add the link and found this article from The New Yorker, describing the book as the creepiest children's book"... with a cult following."

Albert Einstein Quotes

Science and spirituality are not polar opposites. Here are a few thoughts on this by one of the greatest thinkers of all time: Albert Einstein.

"I failed to reach my understanding of the fundamental laws of the universe through my rational mind."

"In this case, we have been completely wrong. What we have called matter is energy whose vibration has become so low that it is noticeable to the senses. Matters are spirit reduced to visibility. There's no such thing as that."

"Time and space are not conditions we live in, but conditions we think about."

Physical concepts are free creations of the human mind and are not, however it seems, determined by the external world."

"Time doesn't exist - we invented it. Time is what the clock says. The distinction between past, present and future is merely a stubborn, persistent illusion."

“I think 99 times and find nothing. I stop thinking, swim in silence, and the truth comes to me."

"Intellect has little to do on the road to discovery. There comes a leap in consciousness, call it intuition or whatever, the solution comes to you and you don't know how or why."

"A person experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separate from the rest, a kind of optical willpower of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, which confines us to our personal desires and affection for a few people closest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by expanding our circle of compassion to embrace all living beings and all of nature in its beauty."
“Our separation from each other is an optical illusion."

"When something vibrates, all of the electrons of the universe resonate with it. Everything is connected. The greatest tragedy of human existence is the illusion of separation."
"Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one."

“We are souls dressed in sacred biochemical garments, and our bodies are the instruments through which our souls play their music."

"Examinating the lives of the most influential people who have ever walked among us, one finds a thread that runs through them all." They have first been aligned with their spiritual nature and only then with their physical self."

"The true value of a man can be found in the degree to which he has achieved liberation from himself."

"The ancients knew something we seem to have forgotten."

"The more I learn about physics, the more I am attracted to metaphysics."

"One thing I've learned in a long life: that all of our science, measured against reality, is primitive and childish. We still do not know one thousandth of what nature has revealed to us. It is quite possible that behind the perception of our senses, there are worlds hidden that we are unaware of."

“I am not an atheist. The problem is too big for our limited minds. We are in the position where a small child walks into a huge library filled with books in many languages. The kid knows someone must have written those books."

“The common idea that I’m an atheist is based on a grave error. Anyone who interprets my scientific theories this way, didn't understand them."

"Everything, each beginning and end, is determined by forces over which we have no control. It is determined for the insect, as well as the star. Humans, vegetables or cosmic dust, we all dance to a mysterious melody, tuned in the distance of an invisible pipe."

"The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. It will transcend a personal God and avoid dogma and theology."

“Energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only be changed from one form to another."

"Everything is energy, and that's all there is to it. Match the frequency of the reality you desire and you cannot help but receive that reality. It can't be any other way. This is not a philosophy. This is physics."

"I'm happy because I don't want anything from anyone. I don't care about money. Decorations, titles or distinctions mean nothing to me. I’m not in the mood for any praise. I’ll take credit for nothing A happy man is too content with the present to dwell too much on the future."

Charity of the Week:

Save The Children

Painting of the Week

About The Author

New York City based contemporary artist, Pam Smilow, began writing the creative lifestyle blog “things we love” in an effort to foster a sense of community during times of isolation and reflection. To read more about her and her art, visit her website and check out the essay written by the Hammond Museum's Frank Matheis entitled The Sophisticated Innocence of Pam Smilow.