A Little Bit Of Everything
A Little Bit Of Everything
Welcome to my nest. A place to think, talk and explore creative ideas.
While thinking long and hard about what to write in the first edition of my newsletter, I was reminded of the song - ‘A Little Bit of Everything’ by Dawes that I have been hearing in loop this past week. I particularly like the version covered by the singer Lizzy McAlpine. While the warm rendition and evocative musicality surely captured my attention, I was drawn more to the heart breaking yet hopeful lyrics of the song.
In order to frame this discussion, it is better to catch the lyrics here in this youtube version. For those of you who may not have clicked that link, I’ve pulled the first two stanzas of the song so you can read.
With his back against the San Francisco traffic,
On the bridges side that faces towards the jail,
Setting out to join a demographic,
He hoists his first leg up over the rail.
And a phone call is made,
Police cars show up quickly.
The sergeant slams his passenger door.
He says, 'Hey son why don't you talk through this with me,
Just tell me what you're doing it for.''Oh, it's a little bit of everything,
It's the mountains,
It's the fog,
It's the news at six o'clock,
It's the death of my first dog,
It's the angels up above me,
It's the song that they don't sing,
It's a little bit of everything.'
Now, before you become flabbergasted on why I would start my first post quoting the stanza of a song that appears to be talking about suicide, I would like to intervene and say that Dawes is talking about something much more fundamental. He is talking about life and the associated hope and hopelessness present in it. In the second verse, he talks about the journey of an old man standing in a buffet line trying to hold on to hope after experiencing loss.
I want a little bit of everything,
The biscuits and the beans,
Whatever helps me to forget about
The things that brought me to my knees,
So pile on those mashed potatoes,
And an extra chicken wing,
I'm having a little bit of everything.
The last verse talks about a bride-to-be, who sees beauty and hope in her future marriage although she is tired of her present wedding preparations. She proclaims that what she looks forward to getting is ‘a little bit of everything’ as opposed to - ‘a stupid little ring’.
'Cause it's a little bit of everything,
The way you joke, the way you ache,
It is waking up before you,
So I can watch you as you wake.
So in the day in late September,
It's not some stupid little ring,
I'm giving a little bit of everything.
Most things about our life are not within our control - where we are born, who we are born to, our bodies, our looks or even who we love. Dawes tries to articulate through this song the simple observation that our life is a haphazard stack of moments, emotions and relationships bound together by our attrited memory. There is no simple solution, no magical insight that can help us figure out why things are the way they are. Sometimes, it really is just a little bit of everything.
I believe that what we have agency over is what we put out to the world, what we chose to share, what we chose to preserve and to cherish. This newsletter is going to be just that - A little bit of everything in my life - my hopes and dreams, passions and angers, art and music, whines, complaints and opinions - A culmination of things I want to remember and want others to remember me by.
If you are new to who I am and why I am starting this newsletter, you can read more about me here. It has an illustrated explanation of everything I want to say!
As a species, we humans have unique social characteristics. In fact, my MFA dissertation was on the very topic that we humans thrive in tribes.
Apart from needing social connectedness for good mental health, one the most important aspects of the creative process is inter-disciplinary collaboration. While I knew this for a long time, I struggled with building an online community using social media platforms. The confusing algorithm, the limited mode of content that can be created, and the overall feeling of shouting into the abyss left me feeling more alone than together.
So I thought I’d give newsletters a try! The unique thing about Substack is that, this relatively new sans-algorithm platform allows me to build a community from a group people who want to read about my life and work. This sets a great basement to build an engaged community who care about the ideas explored in this newsletter to interact in a meaningful way.
All this is to say that - comment, share or start a conversation! Reply to my email! Tell your friends!
Today, I want to share my journey in mindfulness.
Disclaimer : Bird Droppings does not pretend to be an expert in any of the topics mentioned below (except for somethings). Past performance is not indicative of future results. Bird Droppings does not take responsibility of any positive/negative side effects that may arise from the overload of positive creative inspiration below.
Consume at your own risk.
An Unconventional Method to Mindfulness.
Here’s my tiny tale. The other main character in this story is my husband who graces us by his un-featured presence with some encouraging(?) words.
As you can see, meditation is not exactly my forte. For the longest time, I believed that mindfulness meant learning to meditate. However, lately I have come to realize that one can practice mindfulness in many ways.
I recently discovered the Ten Love Letters to the Earth curated by the Emergence Magazine in honor of the passing away of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. In these letters, he bows his head to the beauty of the natural world and talks about finding happiness by being present in nature.
I want to walk gently, with steps of love and with great respect. I shall walk with my own body and mind united in oneness. I know I can walk in such a way that every step is a pleasure, every step is nourishing, and every step is healing—not only for my body and mind, but also for you, dear Mother Earth. You are the most beautiful planet in our entire solar system. I do not want to run away from you, dear Mother, nor to hurry. I know I can find happiness right here with you. I do not need to rush to find more conditions for happiness in the future. At every step I can take refuge in you. At every step I can enjoy your beauties, your delicate veil of atmosphere and the miracle of gravity. I can stop my thinking. I can walk relaxingly and effortlessly. Walking in this spirit I can experience awakening.
This further validated my theory : I’ve found a sneaky way to be more mindful this past year by becoming a specimen collector!
Admittedly, it started after my brother gifted me a specimen collection kit for Christmas, but all is well that ends well!
Now, I am not sure if this is what Thich Nhat Hanh meant, but the act of collecting specimens from nature has attuned my senses to appreciate and observe my natural surroundings much more.
Walks have become relaxing and hikes have started to become exciting. I notice the flowers around me, the patterns on the leaves, the different types of seeds, the critters and creepers within them and all the little animals running around trees. With the recent rainy season in California, spring has decided to bloom in all its splendor. It has been such a joy to collect, document, photograph and draw these natural specimens.
Today, I would like to share some spreads from a number of my journals in the hope that you would be inspired to start one too!
A three leaf clover I collected after yet another unsuccessful attempt to find a four-leaf clover. If you don’t know what’s special about four leaf clovers, check this article out!
A spread that reminds me of the beautiful northern shore of Oahu, Hawaii.
This spread is special because it helps me remember the legend of the Naupaka flower. There are many version of this Hawaiin folk tale. It’s a beautiful story. Read it here.
This is my favorite specimen collected so far! It’s from Byodo-in-Temple in Oahu, Hawaii and it’s one of the most beautiful places I’ve been to.
A journal from a trip to Monterey. I collected a wildflower from the bushes by the beach in San Carlos.
So that it’s for this week. This was WAY harder than I thought it would be so thank you for sticking till the end!
Next week I will be featuring my DIY Watercolor Kit + notes on food journals and such!
Don’t forget to look out for it in your inbox - sometimes it may get hidden in your promotions or spam folder! If, for some reason, you still have not subscribed, click the red button below.
Okay bye guys! See y’all next week!