A Moment of Introspection

22 Dec

Written By Quinn

Kansuke Yamamoto - A Chronicle of Drifting, 1949 collage

There’s an elegance and a sense of grace to this picture. When I relax into the scene, I wonder about the situations this represents. In reality, a person who metaphorically sails the sea speaks of living a life that is likely to involve being swallowed by whirlpools or caught by a lightning strike. Symbolically, she’s not in a bad place.

She stands on rock, not sand, so her foundations are solid. The waves are coming close to her feet, and as she looks out, you can only be drawn to imagine what she sees. Her mind as a boat could refer to freedom of mind. Or does it represent freedom for her emotions to sail the seas at leisure through imagination? There’s a hint of longing in how she faces out towards the open water. Does a part of her yearn for the unpredictability that only the open water can bring? But that’s a sailboat, not a pirate ship nor a submarine; they conjure visions of sunny blue skies with only wisps of white cloud and plenty of warning if there’s a chance of rain or storm.

I see a time when emotion flows but is non-threatening to the self. The woman’s pose reflects grace and calm, and the water reflects the light. Perhaps it’s a time of reflection, and as she glances forward towards the out-there, is it quiet time to wonder what the future will bring? Or do those introspections lend themselves to visions of escapism?

The other day as I was listening to Clarissa Pinkola Estes, I was reminded of how she sees all rocks as a connection to the symbolic mother. I wondered if this is because she sees the earth as mother, and rocks are, of course, a part of the earth. The earth itself can be viewed as one giant rock. On a shoreline, they help to distinguish what is solid and what is not. Rocks always remind me of the parable of the wise and foolish builders. However, I’ve often preferred to sit with the foolish myself. Rocks are eroded by water over an extended period, yet sands are forever shifting and offer no sure-footing. This image could be looking at a pull between security and freedom or between the known and the unknowable. Whatever security the rocks are referring to, be it a job, a relationship, or self-image, the picture says it has been created over time. I see no sign of having to rush; in fact, there’s no sign of any impetus to act at all. It’s simply about being in a place where we find time to reflect. Life has made time available to pause, think, and reflect on whatever changes may be possible.

Some people never quite manage to make it to shore, and others will find only sand beneath their feet once they arrive on land. I know of people on this planet who find it relatively easy to stick with their safe, predictable, and stable life. And yet their thoughts wander freely through the what if’s and if only’s their mind creates. Thinking and doing are not the same, and imagination offers no actual substitution for experience. But as always, let it be each to their own, although sometimes it is better to let those thoughts just pass on through.