something about snow...

...that makes me happy.

this morning when i looked out my window the world around me was covered with a soft blanket of snow. it feels so peaceful. until the snowplough comes through and clears the streets everything is very quiet. for a moment or two it seems like the world has come to a stop and just breathes in the marvelous air of freshly fallen snow. there is something about the silence after a snow fall that has always fascinated me. it seems snow functions like a soothing blanket, a hug from above and the world gives in and relaxes. i love it.

yesterday night was Shakespeare night. i had another rehearsal, our second but this time we took our time and read really slowly and spoke about what we were reading. wow, Shakespeare is a master when it comes to language. he can write sentences that seem harmless but when you know about the time period and what was going on back then the meaning can suddenly change and you might have something rather insulting. it is fascinating. for me many monologues are just a blur of beautiful sounding words but the meaning? i make it up along the way. most of the time i am pretty close but sometimes i can be far off the actual meaning. so it was quite fun to listen to all these Shakespeare fans discussing the content and slowly but surely discovering that i had understood it completely different. if you just take his words as they are with your modern mind setting and understanding you can gallop far in the opposite direction without even recognizing it. i find it fascinating that even though every one had the same script with the same words in it we all understood it different. (i, of course was the one the farthest of...:))

and so i wondered... how much of what we say to each other is actually understood the way we said it? or even better how much of what we say is actually what we mean? because we all have different minds filled with different stories, experiences and teachings. so when and how can we be totally clear? and when can we be certain that the other person actually understands what we are talking about, left alone what we are feeling? cause understanding what we are thinking is one thing but understanding what and how the other person is feeling is a whole new story... that requires a whole different knowledge of vocabulary.

we talked and discussed and on my part, listened :), for 3 hours and only made it though the first act. oh Shakespeare. many times during the evening i caught myself wishing i could ask him in person and let him explain it. so why again did you write it that way? and did you really mean it like that? or are we miles off? and of course he would answer me with an understanding of the 16th century . wow, i guess that conversation would be rather confusing...;)

so tonight i will be again rehearsing. this time in Fergus and this time i do understand what i am saying. but again does that mean i know what it means? ...

i am sending everyone a warm hug. may you feel peace and comfort today. and may you feel understood by the people around you.

;)

jewels