The Authentic Dig
‘Unearthing a mosaic is one of the most exciting discoveries on an archaeological dig. Mosaics are pictures or decorative patterns formed by inlaying thousands of small, multicolored chips to create a larger visual representation. Early mosaics tell sacred stories about ancient worlds- how people lived and what was important to them- providing archaeologist with revealing glimpses into the past.
On the authentic dig we shall also go in search of a mosaic: what brought us moments of happiness and contentment in our past lives. When taking a backward glance, always hear in mind that memory is very fickle. She must be wooed and courted if she is to succumb to our charms. Sometimes she surprises us with her generosity and we recall moments with astonishing clarity. Most of the time, however, our memories are fragmented, like small colored chips. When this happens, we need to be patient as we brush away the sediment of the past.
Today, prepare for your personal dig in a thoughtful way. Let your authentic archaeologist gather artifacts that can coax memory: old photographs, letters, mementos. Carve out time when you can be alone and take a leisurely trip back in time. Enjoy a glass of wine or a cup of tea. Listen to your favorite music from yesterday: Elvis, the Beatles, the Bee Gees. Peruse the photographs, flip through your high school yearbook, read the old love letters. Trace your life back to when you were ten, sixteen, twenty-one, twenty-five, forty and onward. See what memories are triggered as you reacquaint yourself with the girl and woman you once were. Linger only on the happy times. What you were searching for is a pattern of personal authentic pleasures and preferences. These are the chips in your mosaic.
“The events in our lives happen in a sequence in time, but in their significance to ourselves they find their own order,” writer Eudora Welty confides. With patience and quiet observation, these events will provide the seeker in you with a “continuous thread of revelation.” ‘ -Sarah Ban Breathnach, Simple Abundance A Daybook of Comfort and Joy
Who does not love looking at yearbooks, even if they are not your own? A book full of memories in the making… for people. Where are they now?
Old photos bring a life of long ago… making it all clear again. You can get lost for hours.
The chips of my mosaic …..
Ten, I was a naive little girl- riding my banana seat bike. Playing school with my brothers and the neighborhood kids. Acting like I was a little momma.
Sixteen, I remember a trip to Cancun to celebrate the birthday milestone. Dating my high school sweetheart. Still so naive.
Twenty one, I became a mother to a sweet, beautiful little boy named Garrett. The first moment I saw his face is forever etched in my mind.
Twenty five, I was divorced from my high school sweetheart. Searching for myself. For my place. Still probably very naive.
Thirty, I was the mother of four, one being a step child, two being a set of twins, and pregnant with my final sweet baby. Living in denial and searching for myself. Funny thing is, I spent all of my younger years waiting for thirty. I just knew that would be when I would finally have life figured out. Naive?
Thirty-five, forty and onward, are still in my future.
This is my mosaic, for now anyway… What is yours?
‘Sometimes a person has to go back, really back- to have a sense, an understanding of all that’s gone to make them- before they can go forward.’ -Paule Marshall