Flexibility

See how some trees bend.

To make pots, the clay might need to be flexible to create many things, including ridged pieces for sculpture. Knowing when to be flexible and rigid is learning flexibility itself, as it is being able to change and adapt. The only constant is change, and with that, as time passes, even mountains are reduced to dust by erosion by wind and water. Failure to adapt will lead to extinction. No matter how much we want things to stay the same and fight to keep it that way, small changes happen continuously, washed like sediment into the river of time.

“In flood time you can see how some trees bend, And because they bend, even their twigs are safe, While stubborn trees are torn up, roots and all. And the same thing happens in sailing: Make your sheet fast, never slacken—and over you go, Head over heels and under: and there’s your voyage. Forget you are angry! Let yourself be moved! I know I am young, but please let me say this: The ideal condition Would be, I admit, that men should be right by instinct; But since we are all too likely to go astray, The reasonable thing is to learn from those who can teach.”

Sophocles. Antigone. Translated by Dudley Fitts and Robert Fitzgerald, Harcourt, Brace & World, 1939, Scene 3 lines 80-90.

Clay processed for throwing must be plastic and somewhat soft to make forms on the wheel. For pulling handles, the clay must stretch and have elasticity to still hold itself together. I know what to add to clay that is stiff, but I am not sure what to add to life. For the past few months, I have been practicing flexibility, and I am not sure how I am doing with it all. I still have pots thrown and some ready to be fired. That means I am still creating somehow in the face of life’s resistance. Some have issues that are far worse. Some days, I may be stretched thin more than others, but today is all I have, and how I react to the change now will be all that matters while attempting to do the next thing correctly.

Being flexible and doing the next thing correctly can be difficult. Following empathy, generosity, and gratitude can be more complicated than making the pots and firing them out. Even if I had nothing of material to give, I still also have my attitude and my mind still intact. With a little discipline and hard work, I know I can work things out for the best. If not, I might have to try another strategy or use different tactics or techniques. One thing I do know is that through all the change, I will still be creating as long as I am able. One written line at a time and one pot at a time. You only need one thing to start.

Being flexible with my time and resources has proved helpful. Even though I may not have much, I can be generous with my knowledge and skills to help others with the empathy I possess, for which I am grateful. See how that works? If I dig down, I might find I am doing just fine now. How lucky I am to be flexible.