The Good Life - 08/12/2023 - Mermaid lifeguard
I was sitting, meditating, upon the sand at dawn. Early morning. No one nearby. I was seated ramrod straight. Eyes barely open. My loose, blurred focus resting upon the line of frothing, folding waves crashing at the edge of the sea. There was no one in the water. Such peace. My mind was empty, as I simply measured my breathing: focusing on each inward breath and outward exhalation. Enjoying life. At peace with simply being alive… Suddenly, I saw a splash far out beyond the outer waves. And then another. And another still. Deliberately breaking my meditation, I brought my old eyes into slow focus to squint and try and see what was happening out there far beyond the last waves. An arm! And again an arm! It’s a swimmer! It’s someone coming in alone from way out at sea! Wow! I watched as the lone swimmer drew closer, angling for the sand just north of where I sat. Soon the arms were turning at the outer breakers and then the swimmer paused for a bit before trying and successfully catching a big wave, gliding easily within the wave, riding the wave through the surf zone, right up to the edge of the sand. And then she stood up. It was a woman! A beautiful young woman, maybe twenty years old. “A mermaid!” I smiled and said aloud for no one to hear. The young woman emerged fully from the sea and paced quickly up to lifeguard tower 18, climbed the ladder, opened the door and went inside. Ten minutes later she emerged, having changed her bikini for a red one-piece bathing suit. She’s not a mermaid, but a lifeguard (or maybe both?) arriving for work at dawn from her home out there in the sea. The young woman lifeguard got her tower all set up, opening all the windows, setting out her red rescue float, and putting up an American flag which began waving gently in the light on-shore breeze. She was ready for the day. And she was the first lifeguard on duty, as all of the other lifeguard stations up and down the beach were still empty. I wonder if the City of Huntington Beach knows that one of their female lifeguards this year is really a beautiful mermaid from the sea? One who arrives at dawn before the others, alone, from far out in the ocean to join us, and to protect us, and to enchant us all at the edge of the sea.
The Good Life Meditation is my daily recitation and reminder of personal objectives and principles used in pursuit of a purposeful life in spite of a universe of seeming indifference. Learn more about The Good Life at my website GoingAlone.org or by reading my book Going Alone. And visit our Discord at: https://lnkd.in/gFgfGmY6
OBJECTIVES: 1. Be Always Ready to Die 2. Make Good Use of Time and Resources 3. Develop Good and Sound Life Principles 4. Cultivate Good Emotional Reactions 5. Perform Good Actions 6. Recognize True Limits and Opportunity 7. One Thing Slowly
PRINCIPLES: 1. Principle of War 2. Principle of Reason 3. Homunculus 4. Anchorhold 5. Home of Good and Evil 6. Principle of Purpose 7. Atomic Principle 8. Principle of Nature 9. The Pirate Ride 10. Principle of Maturity 11. Social Principle
12. Principle of Family 13. Public Speaking 14. Temperance 15. Life Will Not Go Well 16. The Horror Show 17. That Which Must Be Borne 18. The Feast of Offal 19. Distraction 20. Agency and The Great Indifference 21. The Best Seat in the House 22. The Restless Man 23. The Path of Wildness 24. The Great Life Adventure 25. The Risk of Avoiding Risk 26. Sin and Damnation 27. Complete Oblivion 28. The Season of Philosophy
29. Scriptwriting 30. Bullseye Aim 31. The Uphill Climb 32. Arena and Utility 33. Nothing IS enough 34. The Principle of Fun
#Stoic #Stoicism #StoicPhilosophy
My name is Kurt Bell.
You can learn more about The Good Life in my book Going Alone.
Be safe... But not too safe.