reimagining
reimagining
Questions as gifts and living into the worlds of our words
Happy June! I’ve been noticing birds and nests… two nests built from twig to whole, eggs sat upon by parents (robin and mourning dove), babies hatched, the seemingly endless search and feed of worms into tiny open mouths, and soon… the last baby will fly away. Such a gift to be in the presence of birds. [I have some pictures posted on instagram: noticingmatters.]
And, it’s been lovely to share a series of posts on Small Object Noticing Play throughout May: 1-Make friends with an object, 2-How else might I see this?, 3-Into someplace else, 4-Holding what’s sacred. All of my weekly content is available to paid subscribers and is stored on the Substack archive for whenever you have time to dig in. I’m happy with the content and think you’ll like it, too.
For June, I’ll be sharing about travel and all that it opens, connects, and ignites. In fact, if you are opening this newsletter on June 1, you are reading this as I am in Oslo about to board a train to Bergen. I will soon be amongst the fjords! I’ll share more about my Norway travels in my Friday posts (starting 6/3). And since it’s almost my birthday… I thought I’d offer a special gift of 33% off a yearly subscription to Noticing Matters. Join now or pass along a gift subscription to a friend. This offer is valid through 6/8/22. Deepest gratitude to you for your support of this growing community!
I’m happy to share my public essay for the month, this one inspired by a couple of beautiful questions posed by a couple of beautiful friends. Enjoy…
What a lovely gift when a question wants to stay for a while and play.
I was asked two questions in the past month that have nudged me to reflect on their overlap. One from a dear, long-time friend: Is it beneficial to have something that you can describe but may not be able to define? And another from a new friend: What is the ‘reimagining project’?
The first question I jumped into eagerly… to wonder and explore inside description is one of my favorite things to do and one of the most profound spaces I’ve ever found for children, caregivers, educators, leaders, and organizations to deeply engage in process.
The second question I hadn’t been asked in a while and I found myself fumbling with it, feeling like I needed to be “clear” or “concise” or something other than what I was experiencing.
What a lovely gift a question is. And what a lovely gift when a question wants to stay for a while and play.
The name reimagining project has been with me for a while. I remember when I first wrote the words in a notebook. It was 2008. I was living in Cape Town. I was partially writing a poem at my kitchen table and partially inside a moment of daydream about why I’m here, what I long to create. As often happens, I’m shown glimpses that appear again later (before) in surprising ways. I’ve learned to trust glimpses—spend time with them, sense into them, listen, and allow myself to hold them as something I know deep inside myself.
So, when I set up an LLC for my work in 2017, I don’t remember thinking at all about the name. I already knew it. Yet I did notice myself give explanations (when I thought I needed to “prove” what I was doing) for why the name was a good one, why it represented my work, etc. But as I reflect back on my explanations, only one feels true: It’s a name to live into.
Even when I was very young, I had an attention for process. I loved and lingered in the raking of leaves into a leaf house more than actually sitting in it when it was done. And ever since I read Letters to a Young Poet in my early twenties, I’ve resonated deeply with this piece of wisdom from Rainer Maria Rilke: “And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answer.”
One of the beautiful things about life is how it unfolds for you if you let it. How it shows you edges, between spaces, and overlaps that invite you to revise (re-see) what is here and what you think is possible. Because what’s possible is always far beyond anything we can imagine ourselves right now.
Here’s something new I can see (that I found in the overlap of description and definition) about why reimagining is a beautiful place to play and create with others:
re-
look back to see anew and look anew to see again; past-future plays in the present now; invitation to hold knowing and unknowing in a dance
imagine
multi-dimensional creation; inspired by, because of, connected to, commitment to, responsibility for; finding something new inside something known; lift, rejoice, delight, open
-ing
in process; unfinished; evolving; alive; of trust, connection, love; ever better, ever more
And the word project is ever evolving. It’s inherently unknown and potentiates itself through relational learning with others. It’s friendly, too. It’s here to invite you in to sit down for a while, share your stories, let yourself be seen, lean in to listen, play and rejoice in the moment, feel into the connection of our collective reimagining.
Did I define “reimaging project” or describe it? Or does the space in the overlap invite something else? And why does this matter to you? How does wondering in the nuance of words offer anything that matters?
The frequencies of our thoughts-feelings-words-sounds all matter. When we wonder, play, rejoice, laugh, listen, and re-see, we live and express ourselves at frequencies of joy and love. When we attune to the words we use, the thoughts we hold, the feelings we process, we expand our awareness and can decide more carefully (and lovingly) which questions we want to live into and what we want to create.
A word like reimagining is an infinite world; the prefix re- alone opens space for boundless connections and the suffex -ing invites endless layers of learning around what it might mean to imagine. And this is only one word.
Each piece of a word (every word, thought, feeling) is a button. A button is everything. And everything is always where you are.
Can you see what we’re creating? What can grow from a beautiful question, bird in a nest, conversation with a friend, the call of geese, twist of breeze, piece of petal, a glimpse?
love+light, Melissa
Other news:
I was interviewed at the end of 2021 by Sandy Lanes for her podcast, “Awakened to Reggio.” The interview—Looking to Notice—was recently posted. I share my early connections to Reggio, the beauty of serendipity, and the importance of allowing feelings as material for learning. You can listen to it here: Awakened to Reggio. And check out her interviews with other people, too… there are some gems!
I’ll be teaching a couple of classes for the Western PA Writing Project this July. They are online, so you can attend from anywhere you have an internet connection. And there’s one in-person noticing adventure, too, if you’re in Pittsburgh. The courses are paid for by the University of Pittsburgh, so you can attend for FREE!
Feelings on the Page: REGISTER here | Noticing Our Noticing: REGISTER here
If you’re looking for a good summer read, How to Notice is a lovely book to keep in your backpack or bicycle pouch. It’s a small book that acts like a good friend, as it encourages you to slow down and find delight in small things all around you (and some surprises in yourself, too)!
Order through Indie Bound or Amazon. Learn more: read.howtonotice.com
And… check out this dreamy piece of artistic loveliness created by Nicholas Hohman, illustrator of IN A BUTTON.
To learn more about me, my books, and my services: www.melissaabutler.com