It is important to have pleasure in our lives. Pleasure, or even the thought of it, motivates people. Pleasure is good, and it is alarming how many people are afraid of pleasure. Many believe if they have too much pleasure, pain will follow. It's like pain is the price we have to pay for pleasure. I do not believe this. I have a sense there is much in life that is here for us to enjoy.
I have many pleasures, and I delight in all of them. A few of my pleasures are reading a good book, riding slowly through the mountains or forests on the back of our motorcycle, wrapping myself up in my warm fuzzy robe on a chilly night, well prepared food, a glass of Evan Williams honey whiskey in the evening, intimate conversations with friends, family gatherings, sitting quietly on my patio watching the birds, butterflies and squirrels and talking to the trees, sunrises and sunsets and following through with an original idea or project. Since getting sick in my physical body over a year ago, sadly, some of my pleasures have been curtailed.
When Paul and I first met seventeen years ago, nothing pleased us more than getting on our motorcycle and taking off for parts unknown. We sometimes had a destination but were prone to take the long way to get there.
When we ride, we are truly engrossed in the journey and the pleasure we derive from being out in the open. We mostly stick to back roads and over the years we have seen a lot of americana in small towns off the beaten path.
We take trips on our motorcycle and absolutely delight in strapping a suitcase to our luggage rack and off we go.
One of my favorite motorcycle trips was in Ireland. We rented a motorcycle in a town outside of Dublin and for nine days traversed the island. We had no reservations and no agenda. We just rode. Some places were so delightful, like the Caha Mountains, we went twice.
Another delightful trip was when we were headed for the Poconos and wound up in New York in the Adirondacks. We hit the Poconos on the way back!!
I really enjoy our motorcycle rides, however for the past one and a half years, we have not done much riding because of my extreme fatigue and general sense of not feeling good. I miss those rides and hope I will feel good enough one day soon to experience copious amounts of motorcycling.
Another great pleasure of mine is eating good food. I am a "from scratch" cook and baker and I used to make so many enticing, tasty dishes and desserts. Being a Cajun girl from Southeast Louisiana, I specialize in good Cajun cooking. Before I got sick, I would have fresh home baked breads, cookies and cakes around and often cooked a pot of gumbo or jambalaya.
I still cook some and occasionally will bake, but for the most part that has all gone by the wayside, because one of the symptoms of my illness is a loss of taste. Now to some, that may not be an issue, but I am one who eats slowly, thoroughly chewing my food and paying attention to the explosion of tastes in my mouth as I eat a meal. I also am, so often, too tired to stand and prepare meals and baked goods, so I don't cook like I used to.
Today when I eat, I still eat slowly and pay attention to the food I am eating, but due to lack of taste, eating a meal is just something I do to fuel my body. I really miss the pleasure I used to get out of my food. I still have a little taste but what is left seems to be tainted. Every once in a while I will eat something that is really delicious. At those times I am filled with gratitude that I can taste the food.
I have heard people use the term "guilty pleasure." Personally, I am not sure what that is because try as I might I cannot find a down side to experiencing pleasure, unless you are hurting someone or something. We all need those moments of pleasure.
I believe pleasure has a transcendent value. Kahlil Gibran, in The Prophet, writes that pleasure is a freedom-song, a by-product of spiritual freedom. This freedom is experienced when a person has the ability to say yes to life. Think about the concept of saying yes to life and yes to those things that bring you pleasure. We all deserve to experience that which bring delight to our hearts. Don't say no. Delight in your pleasures because you never know when they will be curtailed for a while, or totally eliminated.
No comments:
Post a Comment