Biking to a Place Inside and Out / 04

Road biking at high elevation on the Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina

But here in the South biking takes on a whole new dimension. It explodes with energy and beauty. Both road biking and mountain biking provide a means to an enriching and trans-formative end. This post entitled “Biking to a Place Inside and Out” includes a gallery of images that records visually that magnificent end.  And it is an attempt to express the color, beauty, emotional, and physical essence of biking. It is difficult to say what I enjoy most–road or mountain biking. They both provide their own unique challenges. The mountains of Western North Carolina, and the forest areas of South Carolina harbor great recreational parks such as Tsali, DuPont State Forest, Bent Creek, and Laurel River in NC and Paris Mountain, Southside and FATS (Forks Area Trail System (named one of the top 10 machine-made trail systems in the country)) in SC. These are moderate and difficult level trails with hundreds of feet in elevation changes. They are comprised of single track, access roads, and some, like the Left and Right Loops at Tsali, a single track that the rider navigates around a large man-made lake (Fontana Lake). In a recent conversation with a fellow rider, we discussed the horrible consequence of making a riding error and going over the edge into the lake (not good). In the winter the lake is drained and in the summer it is at full capacity.  Until then, it had not occurred to me that the prospect of losing one’s bike to the lake could become a reality.  But a challenge is a challenge, and in mountain biking especially, there can be no room for fear. Both the Left and Right Loops are each approximately 12 miles in length, and any lapse in concentration could be costly. In contrast to the obvious hazards, Tsali is a very beautiful recreational park located on the borders of Swain and Graham counties with the Great Smokey Mountains as its magnificent playground.  One can only marvel at the beautiful surroundings that become infused with every fiber of your being as you push, pedal and commit yourself to go one yard farther—to make that climb. Throughout most of these parks are rivers, gorges, tree roots, rocks, creek crossings, ravines, dead drops, imposing trees everywhere, and some that provide mountains summits that climb to 5000 feet. Expect to fall, expect to get hurt. These and numerous other challenges test the will, the level of oxygen deprivation to the muscles, balance, hand/eye coordination, timely decision making, and your overall physical stamina.

The tree obstacle on the trail at Laurel River, North Carolina

Biking to a Place Inside and Out / 03

Taking a break at FATS (Forks Area Trail System) in South Carolina

Biking in the big city is quite different from biking in rural areas such as here in South Carolina. In the city, it’s about taking your time and blending in with your surroundings i.e. talking with strangers (girls mostly), stepping in and out of stores (got to have a lock), cruising downtown (looking cool), and going to the park for that “getting away from it all feeling”. Philadelphia has one of the largest city parks in the nation called Fairmount Park.  It embodies four sections of the city, with beautiful trails and drives (most notably the East and West River Drives).  Rivers, creeks, long stretches of trails and scenic vistas can be found only by biking, horseback riding or hiking.

Bike and helmet in a surreal setting at Laurel

Biking to a Place Inside and Out / 02

Biking across the tracks and taking photos at Laurel Creek.

In Philadelphia, growing up as a teenager in the 1960’s and 70’s, I enjoyed the freedom biking gave to my friends and I. We had back then what we called “Vroom” bikes. These were the bikes with the big V-shape handlebars (before the smaller BMX).  As a group of young riders we were very competitive. We often challenged others boys from rival gangs in competition to see who could do the longest “wheelies” (lifting the front wheels and pedaling for blocks at a time, turning corners, and riding backwards). Needless to say, we sometimes found ourselves in fights, arguments and riding for our lives. Gangs were a prominent fixture of Philadelphia in the 60’s and 70’s and although we were quite young we were not immune to the violence in rival neighborhoods.

Meditating next to a river of glass and rock at Laurel Creek

Biking to a Place Inside and Out / 01

Resting at the end of the Laurel Creek Trail, Madison County, NC

There is something about biking on a trail or on the road that leaves one breathless—sometimes literally breathless. The energy consumed, the movement imposed, and the feeling of space and time standing still. In all of this there is the sense of traveling without moving, yet always a feeling of perpetual flight.

I love biking, then and now…

Reaching the summit at Tsali Recreational Park, Graham County, NC

Transcending the Mundane

Finding the path to Liberation and the end of cyclic existence

Our daily lives at times are filled with what seems like perpetual forms of the mundane.  This is when the life around us appears to slow down and things appear to stand still. The thinking mind is no longer centered, but restless—searching for something to attach itself to.  It is moments like this that we long for distraction. We may at this time unknowingly appear to be succumbing to this longing, but it has been there all along. It is the ego and it is at the foundation of our cyclic existence: (samsara): uncontrollably being reborn under the influence of disturbing attitudes and karmic imprints.

Today, I am experiencing such disillusionment or distraction. I am not at all centered. I want to think of something to do or find a profound gesture to give my life greater meaning.  I say to my-self “you can create some art, or write a post for the blog or rehash thoughts about what I want out of life.” Now that (rehashing thoughts) is certainly a great way to keep one-self distracted—to be out of the present moment. The quickest way to address these moments of being “lost” in our thinking is to sit quietly and just observe the thoughts through our practice of meditation.  Let the thoughts, like the waves of the ocean, rise and fall. We can say to ourselves, “I am thinking.” This is the beginning of Liberation: freedom from cyclic existence and Nirvana: the cessation of unsatisfactory conditions and their causes.

So today, I see the mundane for what it really is: a distraction from what is: We may call it mundane, but it is life itself in this present moment, and we can learn to embrace it.

And when we see it for what it truly is, we are free from any misconceptions that may arise.

We are on the path to Liberation and the end of Samsara.

The Spark that Ignites Our Dream of Love Soon Fades Away

A 2011 remix for Life and Stolen Innocence with poem

        

four point two million sympathy cards                                                                                                         hallmark                                                                                                                             dissipating blue-clear skies to purple gray skies                                                                      vertical sky-cam                                                                                                                                a gun in hand                                                                                                                                     aisle four

the sound of a distant airplane                                                                                                         voices behind closed doors                                                                                                          clear skies, green grass, eternity                                                                                                 hand-held sony super 8 interviewing                                                                                                  clips from serial mom and                                                                                                           fourth of july picnics

christmas morning                                                                                                                    echoed screams                                                                                                                           polaroids                                                                                                                                    father knows best                                                                                                                         sleep in pain, wake to fear, live without love                                                                           family sitcoms circa: 1960’s

The Narrow Way: Choosing a Path

When we find a path that leads back to ourselves, we discover things anew

In 2002 I moved from Philadelphia to South Carolina. It was a time for a deliberate and conscious change. The beautiful natural landscapes of the Carolinas, Tennessee and Georgia all provided a sharp contrast to the harsh urban decay of what was becoming, in some parts, the City of Philadelphia. It was a very positive move for me, and I immediately embarked on a journey to rediscover some important sustaining elements of my life i.e. Mind, Body, Creativity and Spirit. I call them my Four Jewels.  The very first thing I did when I arrived was go up into the mountains. I hiked, explored and found beauty, space and peace. Hiking as an adventure has a wonderful aspect to it, that is physical, emotional and exploratory.  Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina is home of the Mile High Swinging Bridge and various trails. It is one of the highest peaks east of the Mississippi. While walking along the bridge, above the beautiful gorge below, one can begin the journey of self discovery. And in doing so, find a subtle, yet profound emergence of the meaning of man and nature as one.

The Narrow Way / The Bridge to Knowing

The Narrow Way / The Bridge to knowing begins with your daily meditation practice

We often try to understand who we are through the process of knowing. In doing so, we come face to face with a peculiar dialectic.  That peculiarity is how to bridge the awareness of being the knower and the known. To do this, one must understand that everything in awareness is known because of you. Our perception of the things around us is derived from an ever changing inherent existence. Things can never exist upon their own power, nor can the awareness of things be from the thinking mind alone. We exist in that place in between the two — You are Knowing. It is the state of Knowing that frees us from the misconceptions, the untruths of the object / known relationship and the subject / knower relationship. We begin the journey with our daily practice in meditation, and move forward when we let go of ourselves and the world around us and just Be That which Is.

Maybe Tomorrow a Better Dream a Better Life

2011 remix of Life and Stolen Innocence, Recovery and The Spark that Ignites Our Dream of Love Soon Fades Away

Millions of children, throughout the world, are abused in one form on another.  It is heartbreaking that they must live with the sharp pain of an unkind word, neglect, shame, or physical torment. It shatters their hopes and dreams. As a society we cannot lose sight of what a young girl or boy experiences when their trust in those who should protect them is betrayed. We as a community, a village, must extend love and compassion, hope and inspiration that tomorrow’s dreams and life itself can and will be beautiful, safe and fulfilling.  There is a lot of space in the hearts of  all children to find that warm embrace, the story that leaves a smile, and a relationship that is love.

Hopes, Dreams and Stolen Innocence

A 2011 remix of the 1993 exhibit Life in Stolen Innocence

Lately, I have been thinking about the human condition. How we must see ourselves as the protectors of the young and the innocence throughout the world. How our society prevails, or should prevail in a time of moral entropy. How we must find the courage to uphold the moral reason for love and compassion.  In this post entitled “Hopes, Dreams and Stolen Innocence” and the related post, “Maybe Tomorrow a Better Dream a Better Life”, I look back at works, from the past that I have created in the attempt to address these issues. In 1993, at Atlantic Community College, I exhibited my photo / text piece entitled “Life and Stolen Innocence” i.e. the fictional depiction of two young girls growing up simultaneously—one child living in a loving and sustaining home, and the other child in an abusive home environment.  And in 2002 I revisited this examination with the digital collage “The Spark that Ignites Our Dream of Love Soon Fades Away”. Both works were an attempt to focus on the idealism of youth, in the shadow of dreams and hopes lost.