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Keepin’ It Real

Keepin’ It Real is a saying adopted  by Gangsta culture.  In its original expression, and perhaps when voiced by Swizz Beatz, Jay-Z and Flo Rida, the term means being true to oneself, representing oneself authentically.  Being real, having real expectations about one’s own life and contributions, is essential in developing a positive sense of productivity. ‘Real’ defined means true, actual; not imaginary, alleged, or ideal.

When I began this blog almost three years ago, I wouldn’t be Keepin’ It Real if I said I didn’t have some unrealistic expectations about  who and how quickly I’d reach people with its messages on meditation and spirituality. After writing advertising for several years, I felt called to move out to the American West, where I was very fortunate to be exposed to some powerful spiritual purification techniques. First, at several silent, week-long retreats with my meditation teacher Shinzen Young and later being fortunate to partake in Native American Ceremonies with my Lakota teacher, the man I jokingly refer to as Wicasa Itankan Tatanka Weitgo, also known as Phil. The result of those esoteric experiences was initially a bit misconstrued; having momentarily looked into death and stepping  over into eternity, I made the decision that I wouldn’t  waste a moment of time laboring to build something that wasn’t going to have any lasting value in life (or death, I suppose). My feet temporarily left the earth, which became quite problematic, considering I still had a good forty or fifty years to spend down here.

After wandering about in the wilderness and enjoying a decade of living like a Sonoran desert rat, going to Ceremonies and retreats and being blown about by great winds, the time came to turn to share my experiences and make a go at catapulting my creativity into the world. Harkening back to my career as an advertising copywriter, I declared that I now wanted to write things to uplift humanity instead of trying to shake down the human race and sell ’em stuff.

Ergo, The Spiral Journal. “Diversions, distractions, laziness, and other bad habits aside, I’ve finally, somehow, acquired the willingness for my nose to be crushed to the grindstone, for my shoulder to bear the burn of the wheel. If it takes months or years to raze the bullshit and unearth some spiritual thinking in this blog space that presents itself as remotely original, then so be it,” is an early excerpt from a post dated January 26th, 2011. And here, almost three years later, I’m grappling even harder with making good on my creative contribution. On the subject of Keepin’ It Real, however, my expectations have telescoped: it’s enough to know the difference I’m making in small ways, with notes of thanks and ever-increasing victories, small wins  always preceding large triumphs. And the realization that grand expectations can actually kill hearty, real experiences that can keep one well fed has been a tremendous insight. Less approval and more Love, as doors open to a new willingness to play the hand that was dealt, the only one anyone can ever play that leads to a true sense of worth and accomplishment.