A Sense of Direction

I have been reading two books about walking the sacred trails in Spain , Japan and Ukraine and hiking in England.  'A Sense of Direction' by Gideon Lewis-Kraus  and 'Walking With Plato'  by Gary Hayden are the two books. I always dreamed of walking the pilgrim trials to Santiago de Compostela and Shikoku as well as the trails in England. This maybe the closest attempt that I would ever achieve in experiencing these hikes.

I have done some modest walks in the nearby state parks and have felt a certain calmness and satisfaction in long lonely treks in the woods. I guess I wanted to find out from these works if there was further lessons to learn from these long difficult hikes; perhaps some enlightenment that would justify the hardship and loneliness of these walks.

I guess the lessons would depend on the individual doing these treks; resolving what ever issues that are plaguing them at that point in their lives. For me, it was to recover from depression after the death of my father. These walks have turned out into healthy excursions to keep sane from work stress. I have not been hiking lately and I hopes these books would spur me on again.

Other books that I have read abut these subject were 'The Roads to Sata: A 2000-Mile Walk Through Japan' and 'Looking for the Lost' by Alan Booth; who died of colon cancer shortly after finishing his last hike. These books have better writing and excellent in the adventure travelogue vein but with deep insights into Japanese culture.

I had read these books in the Philippines and I had some modest hikes in the mountains of Batangas and Rizal; camping overnight with friends. Mostly I had enjoyed walking the cities that I had visited; enjoying places like Tokyo, Bangkok,  Beijing, Shanghai and Shenyang. But only the the recent years have I enjoyed the hikes in the wonderful state parks near the place I live; mostly to exercise and relax the mind.

The Courage to Create

I have been trying to start a book during my Christmas break with limited success. My inspiration is the composer Philip Glass; I recently read his memoir and watched the documentary of his  life. His thoughts about creativity is insightful; this lesson may be what I have been missing to spur me into the next level.

Creativity is really an act of losing one's sense of self; of not watching yourself when you start your work. The writer ( or composer) forgets what he has written during the act of creation, just going right ahead until he or she finishes his task. In other words, he loses himself in creativity; his mind does not stop him with self-doubt or churning thoughts.

The problem is that the mind does not free itself from it's persona; where one keeps looking at himself during the act of creative writing; the mind holding him back from the freedom of creativity. This is the main problem: the fear of freedom. One must have the courage to create which is a title of a book I read long ago.

The sensation is similar to expressive writing; where one just dumps the thoughts in his brain. Recently, I printed out all my typed journal writing as well as the contents of this blog. I was amazed with the volume of work. Re-reading my entries made me recall those events that happened long ago. I was surprised that I had written those words. I had forgotten what I have written during the act of creation.

The trick is to convert the act of 'abandon' during expressive writing in journals into the process of creative writing; the craft of a novelist. These thoughts come to mind when Glass said he does not recall his compositions when people asked him what he was thinking at the time he was composing his works. He had lost his 'persona'; of himself watching himself when writing.

Coming Back

I can't wait to see how much money I would get after the tax cut. Listening to the news today, the recent bill is being translated into the nuts and bolts of implementation.Some commentators think that the tax cut would result in salary increases or bonuses.

Some companies have already announced that their employees will receive bonuses because of the tax cuts. Now may be the time to legislate a higher minimum wage so the money  goes to the pockets of ordinary folks.

Not much is known about the details since the bill was rushed through Congress. Listening to NPR news, no public hearing or discussions or debate were done about the bill. So one will see what's next when the Congress translates how the bill will work.

If extra money does reach the rank and file, where would it go? Some predict a boom in restaurant spending or purchases in Amazon. But the money maybe best used paying down credit card bills or saving for retirement. But will the bill really translate to an increase in take home pay? Or will the money just end up in company bank accounts. Congress believes the extra money will spur investments, improve competitiveness but history shows that that is not always the case.