“…So cares and joys abound, as seasons fleet.” - William Shakespeare

Here I go again, recommending a web item after complaining last week about our obsession with computers and the internet .…

My ever-vigilant-for-the-perfect-moment assistant, Nancy, sent me a link to a YouTube video that set off bells in my head. It records a delightful example of a phenomenon recently occurring world-wide, the “impromptu movement,” as I call it. The video documents - what we old geezers used to call a “happening” - in a train station in Belgium that links art and expression with the appearance of spontaneity and, dare I say, magic. The crux of the video is that, without warning, a group dance event occurs in a public space that allows spectators to be surprised, thrilled, or even annoyed while being lifted out of their daily routine and comfort zone. Intriguingly, when the moment passes, the performers return to their “normal” existence as if nothing unusual happened at all.

Now, what seemed to occur spontaneously was carefully choreographed and rehearsed, of course, although its freshness and immediacy suggest otherwise. But there is a growing movement out there to take art and self-expression from the sanctity of the concert hall or performance space and into the streets, and to perform it without the formality or the guarantee of connectivity between artist and audience that we all typically expect when we set out to experience art. (I hesitate even to say that we “experience” art, since we’ve been socialized in this country to be spectators of art rather than to truly experience it.) There’s an attempt within this movement, however, to deny the permanence of art or the assignment of value to it, much like the Tibetan monks who ritually discard the sands over which they so painstakingly labored to produce a mandala painting. The effort to create, the moment in which the effort occurs, and most of all, the shared experience of discovery and celebration are what’s most important. There’s something about this idea that is remarkably refreshing and yet vaguely familiar.

I have been known to lament the fact that our country seems to have lost the ability to celebrate on the micro and the macro levels. We keep our heads down and walk a straight line to our destinations, not making eye contact, both metaphorically and in reality. Yet what is it about a drum circle that so stirs our blood, or an event like a parade that draws people to them in the thousands? I believe it is human nature to gather in common areas, seeking ways to be touched by the act of creation. Unfortunately, in 21st century America that means sitting politely in a uncomfortable seat next to dozens or hundreds of others (trying not to make contact, of course), waiting for the cue to applaud, laugh, cry or fidget. But…if the stars align, sometimes we are in the cauldron itself - where emotions are stirred without cues or programs, and we are moved in ways we never thought possible.

Invite the unexpected into your life and the lives of those around you. Do a victory dance if you feel like it. Sing a song when the moment strikes you. Speak aloud the verses in your heart to the ones you love. Celebrate the moment….then let it pass.

By the way, here’s a link for the YouTube video:
Watch it and let me know what you think!

Enjoy and have a celebratory week!