Anam Cara

Celebration: When the Moment Blossoms

Celebration is one of the most intense and delightful forms of human presence. It is lovely to be able to celebrate. Some people never celebrate anything. They have no time. Others are too serious ever to think of celebrating. Some feel there is nothing to celebrate. Such people are prisoners who slog away in a secure and predictable routine. There are few surprises, and no surprise is allowed to interfere with the onerous burden of endurance and commitment. There is no time out for play or devilment. Other people are wonderful at celebrating. Even a small event can be an excuse for a celebration. There is a sense of joy and happiness in celebration. It is interesting that sadness generally drives us towards solitude, whereas joy draws us together in celebration. Nothing does your heart so much good as real celebration. Laughter loosens all the tension in you. When you dance and sing, your soul lifts and the lovely light of the eternal lifts you to a new lightness. Hegel said something fascinating about the True as a passionate festival: “The True is thus the Bacchanalian revel in which no member is not drunk; yet because each member collapses as soon as he drops out, the revel is just as much transparent as simple repose.”

When we celebrate, we joyfully acknowledge and recognize the presence of some person, thing, or achievement that delights us. The desire to celebrate is the longing to enter more deeply into the mystery of actuality. Longing is no longer directed away towards an anticipated future. Now, the present moment has blossomed. You really want what you have. You know the blessings and gifts that are around you. Celebration is an attentive and gracious joy of presence. When you celebrate, you are taking time to recognize, to open your eyes and behold in your life the quiet miracles and gifts that seek no attention; yet each day they nourish, shelter, and animate your life. The art of belonging in, with, and to your self is what gives life and light to your presence; it brings a radiance to your countenance and a poise to your carriage. When your heart is content, your life can always find the path inwards to this deep stillness in you. Rilke said this beautifully: “Hier zu sein ist so viel,” i.e., To be here is so much. Real celebration is the opposite of contemporary consumerism. In fact, consumerism gradually kills both the desire and the capacity to celebrate. The turbo motor within the consumerist spirit ensures that enough is never, ever enough. The mind becomes slow and heavy; the effort to think differently is too demanding; the least stir in that direction already has us out of breath. Our minds have become obese.