Some of you know that I’ve been working on leading a creative movement class for adults. It sounds silly but I think its relevant. A couple of weeks ago, I watched a long string of Miley Cyrus clips and commentaries and sighed. What are we doing, America?
I don’t watch TV. My husband’s in the business, yet we don’t plug up our tube. We have one but it sits in the closet, in the way, way back. Why? You do the math. After watching an hour of the Kardashian show (I was having lunch at a small Jamican joint in Petworth), I am not sorry the box is shoved back there. It is mezzz-merizing. I’ll give you that. But that stuff is like cancer. It just spreads throughout your body eating up anything healthy and good in you.
Oh, and don’t get me started on the music that’s on the radio nowadays. Am I starting to sound like a grandma? I don’t care. It sucks. I’ll admit that I like a few songs out like that one Radioactive or… I can’t think of another right now (Yikes! Senility setting in). Honestly, I can’t say I listen to the radio enough to make a true comment on what’s being played. I search the web and enjoy stumbling upon what I think is good.
But I’ve gotten way off track. That’s what old people do, by the way. Go down these long roads to say what? I forgot where I was going. Oh! Right.
So I’m working on this class because I think there’s a need for adults to remember what its like to be a kid again. We love children for their “innocence” and their “sweetness,” right? Wrong.
We make it all about them to take the focus off ourselves. I know, the lady’s done gone n’ lost it now. Just gimme a second, though, to explain.
The internet, I think we can all agree, is a curse and a blessing rolled up in one. Just like anything else in our lives, good can come out of bad and vice versa. The internet has made worlds available to us. We can learn more about each other. There’s something for everyone… EVERYONE! Babies are born computer literate. It has brought us information and knowledge. But has robbed us of our need for mystery and wisdom.
Remember the show Cosby did, “Kids Say the Darndest Things?” It was cute and lighthearted but at the same time, those kids said things that made you think or amazed you at their insight into life. Now children sound like mini-adults and that’s sad to me.
Adults forget to just simply take in the wonders of the world. We think its silly to explore it without being inebriated or influenced by some mind-altering and sometimes dangerous substance. And we are always rushing around to get where? McDirties? (What my best friend in junior high called McDonald’s). We’re always rushing our kids to grow up. Why? Is it that great being an adult?
Yet, at the same time, we dummy our children down by putting them in front of the tube for hours with fluff and non-substantial media like 90% of the cartoons on Nick or Cartoon Network. We talk to them in squeeky little voices that make us sound like the idiot. Or we speak to them as if they are our homegirl/boy from around the way. Do we really do this? Sure we do! We can’t help it. We’re trying to do right by them, to help preserve their childhood, give them what we didn’t have or the classic – “I’m never doing that to my kids when I grow up.” But what it comes down to is, we pass along our baggage to them.
I could go on, but I want to make this point. If we grown ups paid more attention to ourselves, really took time to do that deep inner work to discover and heal our own childhood hurts. To rekindle or ignite our love and curiosity of the world around us. To turn off the noise that shuts out that inner wisdom that quietly sings in us all. Then we can find the light that leads the way to raising and working with kids so they can make healthier decisions than twerking in a grown man’s twatch.
I haven’t figured out the formula for my class, yet. Mainly because I haven’t had grown people for my class. I’ve had my LilaDance! in the Park series for the babes and adults. But its challenging for people to step out of that big person role with a little person in tow. Especially when in a big open park. It perhaps is more so challenging because its not apart of acceptable behavior to act like angry bears in the middle of Lincoln Park, either.
I need to keep pushing to find folks who will be willing to come out and do the journey within, together. Its just what I believe I have to offer this world. A chance for people to play and be okay with connecting with their sweet, adorable, innocent yet wise inner child. Its the Art of Play.
For those of you who are artists and just started following me, I want to encourage you to continue pouring your heart into your work. Honestly, its the good stuff that keeps us on this planet. Without the art of music, drama, dance, painting, sculpting, crafting, writing (including blogging), we would have destroyed ourselves long, long ago. Thank you to you all, Charlotte Hoather, Mathieu Jang, Andrew and Sarabeth, Nate Ollie.
Winchester Crafts
We are the art, we do it cause we ought to. We scrape by, scrape by, scrape by. But we so tired , so tired so tired, and we still try still try still try, but we so tired so tired so tired.
Bite down check it out, yes it is a fight now for music and music is, afraid how we never really knew we could break down living our dreams. Stand up for what is beautiful, give it up for the ones who try. Oh the art is the reason that we came here, take a bow together we fight.
I call out the reasons why I cant take it, and watch the seasons change and ease my age.
Read more: Nico Vega – We Are The Art Lyrics | MetroLyrics
This is another song the kids and I blast at home. I suggest you do the same and just let the music move you.
Lila as.... Jane Do-It-All 