What does it all Mead?!
People Die. Forests Burn.
Bees get taken out of your walls.
Your friends break up.
Your dog sheds.
Why?
What does it all mead?
Well in that very question, my friends, is where the magic happens.
We get to make the meaning.
Seriously, I will explain below. But know that meaning is not only made at an individual level.
Often, we do it together.
How? Well, a number of ways. But one of the most powerful is storytelling.
When we reflect on the experience of the now and choose where we focus our attention -- which elements we magnify and remember, and which elements we minimize or forget -- we make meaning.
We get to choose how we tell the stories about our lives.
Which characters and dialogue lines we give airtime to in our thoughts and memories, in our consciousness.
Really!
We create our experience of reality as we live within it. First by directing our awareness, then by remembering just what we were aware of in the first place.
Of course it is important that our stories are in touch with the physical, objective reality we share with others. Otherwise, we are simply in the realm of fantasy and the meaning, at least in my eyes, is less valuable.
Mead showed me this.
Specifically, the act of slowing down enough to bring all of my attention to one sip.
If I let the sip just go down my gullet, while thinking of three other things and talking to someone... I won't even catch what I am experiencing.
But if I slow down… If I bring all of my awareness to the cool glass in my hand and the sunlit liquid murmuring within it; if I smell the smells, and taste the tastes, and feel the feels; if I let that sip inspire within me memories, thoughts, and physical sensations; if I truly meditate on the fact that hundreds of bees and tens of thousands of flowers had to coalesce for this sip…
Whew. Life opens up.
(We use the Six S Method to fully appreciate mead with all of our senses. We would love for you to learn this method. Feel encouraged to email Frank back! The first 5 people to do so will get a 30 minute zoom training session with Frank. Time slots are 5:00 or 5:30pm PT on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Just reply to this email and write, “I would like a tasting session with Frank, please,” and he will get in touch to schedule one with you. You will need to buy some mead to appreciate, of course... you can do that here [link], at our tasting room, or at the farmer's market.)
So where do we direct our attention in our everyday lives?
If life spins spins in cycles like a wheel: day to night, week to month, month to season, season to year, year to election, election to decade, decade to century, century to epoch, epoch to age... then from the perspective of the wheel's hub, despite all of this great turning, things are pretty consistent.
There are a few ups and downs with the bumps and jumps that come along the road, but for the most part, the hub keeps spinning, staying pretty level, and gets where you’re heading.
If you get too far out on a spoke of a large wheel, the trip can get pretty tumultuous. Especially when your wheel is conscious of the scope of the globe and the richness and value of human life.
A few revolutions on the fringe can be fun (they said). Hey, they can even generate a lot of energy (they said)! BUT... A whole lifetime spent at the far end of the spoke will likely lead to exhaustion, disorientation, and sickness.
So.
We at GCM say, how about we slow it down, together?
How about we #Takeitfromthehub. The center. The calm part. The part that perseveres regardless of all the ups and downs at the end of the spokes.
The guiding questions for Taking it From The Hub: Is everyone getting their basic needs met? You know; food, water, safety, warmth, love?
Is everyone able to contribute to their community in a way that connects them with others and helps them define their sense of self in a positive, empowering way?
If we’re good there, then we can take our time and slowly, gently, work on the next part: self actualization. The coming to know the essence of the you that persists beyond the context.
When the hub is strong and steady and actualized, many other pieces may get loose or chip off, but the wheel will maintain its course. It will keep on carrying on, on terrain bumpy and smooth, alongside other wheels that take it from the hub.
These aren’t new ideas. These themes are drawn from Maslow's hierarchy of needs. And at the end of his life, Abraham Maslow wrote about Self Transcendence.
Like you, I am human. Like you, I share mead.
I am also a spouse. A parent. A veteran. An entrepreneur. A mead-vangelist. A dog lover. A citizen.
All of these labels and roles will dissolve away one day.
I will still be Frank when they do.
But maybe even my Frank-ness will dissipate into the ether one fine evening.
I’m open to see what happens then...
What do you think? I love getting emails back from you.
Cheers!
Frank
--- Also, the clues to the first ever Golden Coast Mead treasure hunt will be sent out at 4:30pm on October 2nd, the Friday after the full moon on the 1st. We have 3 spots left for non club members and 5 spots left for club members. There will be valuable prizes and beautiful adventures for those that choose to join. All you need to be ready for is a 3 hr drive from Oceanside, about $10 in incidental expenses (maybe) and a little daring and do. We hope it is fun and beautiful and magical for you... And that the journey itself is worth it.