Freedom to 'Be'

The Polish Cultural Institute's  write~up about the "Ball at Hawking's" by Teatr Arka at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival... (now in Barking ~ see below) said that the play is merely a pretext for a broader discussion about the cultural and social status of people with disabilities (and that includes mental health issues in its broadest sense).

Talking yesterday to Teatr Arka’s Director, Renata Jasińska, it is clear that the inspiration for the theatre’s work runs through the veins of this amazing woman, who is passionate and committed to the cause.

Wish I could speak even a little Polish, beyond saying ‘hello’ and ‘goodbye’, so we could have a no holds barred conversation about a topic that is close to my heart. The needs of my own physical health have forced me to formally stop working in the mental health sector; but perhaps the various events that have unfolded in my life over the last year are indicating I am being brought back into it all, but from another angle. The thing is I don’t really get it yet, and will simply have to wait on life to be clearer about what it wants from me.

 Writing my book, an interpretation of the Greek Myth of Eros and Psyche (Love and the Soul) I sort of get that “madness” is a prerequisite for being human; that hate is close to a personality disorder, and that the opposite of love is fear. I get that Renata is fearless and is prepared to go where angels fear to tread, as she works to integrate differently abled people into theatre and into wider society, and to create the conditions whereby they can participate actively in social and professional life.

What is it that differently abled people have to teach the rest of us? The truth is humanity in its entirety is differently abled but the vast majority of us can hide, disguise and/or manage our ‘difference’, so that we ‘fit in’.

When my 12~year old grandson, who is on the Asperger’s end of the autistic spectrum is away from home – with friends, even on holiday – within what sometimes seem like minutes he says 'I want to go home’. These were almost the first words he uttered as a toddler, even when at home!  Josh reinforces my appreciation that ‘to go home’ is synonymous to the need to reside in what St Teresa of Avila called The Interior Castle – the soul’s sanctuary – and the freedom to just ‘be’ who you are.
I believe that Renata provides that sense of ‘home’ for her charges and I look forward to speaking to her more about all that in due time…perhaps even in Poland.

Teatr Arka’s The Ball at Stephen Hawking’s, today and tomorrow at The Performance Studio, Icehouse Quarter, Arc Theatre, 1st Floor, the Malthouse, 62~76 Abbey Road, Barking IG11 7BT. Performance at 7.30 p.m; price £13.50. At this stage ring 020 8594 1095 for availability, or take your chance and turn up at the door.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

When a President Cried

Image
At a time of year when Christians around the world are commemorating the birth of the Divine Child, some parents in Newtown , Connecticut , USA are mourning the death of their children. There are probably hundreds of children around the world – in under developed countries, in conflict zones – who will die every day up to Christmas and beyond. But right now the focus has been on what one British newspaper described as a massacre of innocents. How horrendous to lose your child in such a manner. Schools should be one of the few places where you expect your children to be safe.   I worked with several of the paramedics who were first on the scene dealing with the carnage on the trains at various metro stations after the 2005 London bombings. Many, especially the younger ones, suffered severe post traumatic stress. Not trained for such horrors, those teachers immediately on the scene at that school in Connecticut will carry the scarring from that day for some time. ...
Read more

Personal Health: Reflections in a Global Mirror

Image
{Revised November 2022} This blogpost, first written in 2013, has been revisited in the light of an apparent 'awakening' to the urgency of an impending climate catastrophe.  Currently ( 6 to 18 November 2022)  our illustrious leaders are at the 27th Conference of the Parties to the UN's Framework Convention on Climate Change' (COP27) being held in Egypt. Opening the Conference, António Guterres, Secretary General of the UN said we are on the “highway to climate hell”. That received some interesting responses, including mocking derision. (See [3] below.  We are still talking instead of doing.  When will we get to serious adaptation, upscaling infrastructure to mitigate the impact of climate change and save lives? We are told that as things stand right now, current climate policies will condemn the world to a disastrous 2.8-degree temperature rise by the end of the century. Our collective goal is to limit that rise to 1.5 degrees. Whilst we are getting there... Gree...
Read more

Tough Love in Winter

Image
Yesterday I talked about ‘Big Mama’s’ tough love (The Shape-shifter Reloaded). Today I wanted to share just a snapshot of such an experience, which began at a point when I had just arrived at the foothills of healing.   As the years went on – 5 of them to be precise – I understood that this process will continue for the rest of my life because temptation is with me everyday.   I have to be vigilant because I simply cannot afford to go back to the old ways. Whenever I do slip, I simply observe and acknowledge it; tomorrow is another day.                But that's not all. Mother Nature's healing also confers gifts as an expression of her gratitude, because when we heal ourselves, we also heal the earth; and when we heal the earth we heal others.  So watch out for Gifts of Healing, might be the title of a book I can feel emerging.        The big free...
Read more