Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Wednesday Wish (23)



I grew up with a barn. A big old-fashioned barn. And in that barn out behind my childhood home was a hayloft. The kind you see in the movies. With a rope swing and even a resident owl. Breathe in with me? A deep swig with your eyes closed. Yep…there it is. The sweet and musty scent of hay. In my childhood barn.

My neighbor Sandy had her own barn, too. She lived across the field. Her’s was red and white. Mine was a soft, peeling-paint yellow. Her’s was filled with hay, just like mine. But Sandy’s barn was different. You see, Sandy’s dad was a real farmer. And real farmers, in addition to using their heads, use their sixth sense. They intuit. They feel. They are connected to nature. Sandy’s dad knew that the hay wasn’t just for feeding the animals. He knew it was an opportunity for fun, too. So every year when he filled their hayloft in their red and white barn, he didn’t stack the bales in tight little rows like legos with thoughts of practicality. Nope. Sandy’s dad took the extra time to throw reason to the wind and to elevate fun to its rightful place not just for us kids, but for himself, too. Sandy’s dad made Sandy’s hay loft into an entire magical world.

Up levels, down levels, dead ends and sharp turns, tunnels to make even a bore squeal with happy. Cozy little cubbies just right for two girls to tell their secrets, big open spaces near the tip-top windows to see the rolling fields high up from above—Sandy’s dad thought of everything to make my heart sing. And every year when the new bales came in, I could hardly wait to see what new magic, what new fun, what new delight awaited me in Sandy’s hay loft across the field.

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My Wednesday Wish for You?

You probably work. You probably need to use your head to do your job properly. And that’s all good, of course. You have to eat, after all. But sometimes,  that head needs to be thrown out and into the wind. Sometimes we need to get back to our roots, to the real farmers that live within each of our souls. We need to remember our connection to nature, our natural need for fun, and how we all, at some point in our lives and more often than not, over rate practicality and the importance of head. We forget to cultivate the lightness of fun…the magic of being.

This week, I challenge you to loosen the reins, to stop your head from driving your life’s car. Maybe not all day, or even for very long, but for as long as you can. And longer every time, until you see what a difference less head can make in the fun of your day. Be silly without thinking of the repercussions. Aren’t repercussions really just other people’s issues anyway? Eat some decadent food without a thought of what it will do to the scale. Make a desired phone call without wondering how someone else might interpret it. Take a sick day to lounge in your bathrobe with bubbles and chocolate and not a sniffle in sight. Put your head on the shelf and feel like a real old fashioned farmer with a barn full of hay and a banjo on your knee. Feel. Be. Trust. And believe. Believe what? That everything is better, more magical, when we honor what makes our souls sing.

8 comments:

Marla said...

Loved both of your barns! Our old barn fell down when we were just kids and we never got to play in the hay loft. Did you have a basketball hoop up in your barn? We used to go over to our friends the Weidenbachs and play in their hayloft. They also had a big rope swing up there. You would climb up this huge cliff of hay and jump off to swing. It was so scary but exhilarating at the same time.

Brynne said...

Yep...what FUN that you remembered the basketball hoop, Marla!! Yay! I remember playing that one game with you...what was it called?? Where one person shoots and then the others have to copy. Colonel would always do some horribly complicated shot that bounced off the wall and around a corner or something. Remember when there was no hay and the echos of the basketball danced all the way across the fields? Maybe you heard us playing all the way over at your house sometimes! Thanks for the memories, Marla!! Miss you! HUGS!

Bella said...

Brynne, with the lovely picture that you paint, something tells me I would've had much fun in both of those barns! I spent a year in North Dakota, not so long ago, and the Son had the opportunity to participate in "hay rides" and parties in barns. It was quite the experience. For me, barns, especially red ones, constitute wonderful photographic opportunities. There's something so magical about a red barn! They remind me of my school days! I'm making it a point to have more even more fun in this upcoming year. Life is too short to be serious and formal all the time. Sometimes, you just have to bring silly back! Love you, girl! :)

Brynne said...

OOoohh...I would've LOVED to play with you as a kid, Bella!! I had a secret roof top room above the calf barn, too...I bet you would've also liked that!! Perfect for secrets! And SoSOoO happy to hear there is more silly on the new year's agenda! Hooray! I am right there with you!! Always!:) Happy New Year, dear Bella! Love you!!

Chronicles of Illusions said...

Brynne - it sounds perfect. I never had a barn, but after my marriage broke up I bought a place that did and my son spent a lot of time down there...he was devasted when I had to sell (broken back number 1), but if he had anything like what you had in his times on that place - it leaves me feeling good. Happy New Year dear Brynne - i hope it is full of your special kind of magic.
(((hugs))) Jo

Brynne said...

I am soO glad you had a barn if but for a short time, dear Jo. And I am sure your son still treasures those memories, too...especially since you say he was devastated to leave it. When we are sad to leave something, beautiful footprints are always left behind:)

Happy New Year to you, too, dear Jo. May your new year be filllllllled with all the joy and love you ever dreamed of. Hugs, too, my friend.

Debra said...

I grew up on a farm with a big barn, and played in the loft with my cats.
Love this wish! I'll do all of the above.

Brynne said...

Debra!! I must have known you did...with a tire swing, right? I bet the cats loved it almost as much as you did:) SoO happy to find you here, dear Debra. I hope you had a beautiful holiday and that your heart is warmed by all the possibilities of the new year! :)