On Impermanence

Yesterday I watched this very interesting interview with David Byrne, lead singer of the post-punk band I was a big fan of during my teens, "Talking Heads". Have you heard of them?


Some of their famous songs include Psycho Killer, and Burning Down the House. Just listen to the sound of that! Would I choose to listen to songs with these titles today? Probably not.

But these two tracks in particular really take me back to my youth with their non-sensical lyrics, interesting and catchy - but weird! - beats and sounds. This was back when all we had was MTV and sitting around on friends' sofas watching music videos on TV all weekend (musicians creating music videos for MTV was a brand new thing) was how I'd spend my time, while choosing not to think or worry about things that affected me but I couldn't do anything about (like both my parents being seriously ill with life-threatening, head-related conditions, for example, so the band's name, "Talking Heads" is also relevant and telling) and making it an absolute priority to find and create joy and happiness for myself the best way I could. There was a pragmatic and fiercely carefree quality about my 17-year-old self that I recognise and admire today.

Byrne is in his early 70s these days, and much more subdued and approachable in every way. Super creative! He's even founded a non-profit online magazine definitely worth looking at (reading practice!) called Reasons to be cheerful:




When I think back to all the madness of my teenaged years, I see clearly how much things have changed.

Everything is impermanent, and it is so important to enjoy every moment of our life. Jon Kabat-Zinn (medical doctor, student/follower of Thich Nhat Hanh and founder of MBSR - Mindfulness-based stress reduction) says, "Until you're dead you're not dead! So why not choose to be fully alive?”

I love YouTube. It's been an absolute godsend ever since I decided to move back to Mexico over 15 years ago now. Back then, YouTube meant being able to continue watching all of my favourite TV programs and feel connected to the life I really appreciated and missed so much, back in England.

Meantime, my own YouTube channel, Teacher Tanya Meyer, is only 35 subscribers away from 1K! Apparently, only 9% of all YouTube channels reach 1K subscribers. So that's nice!

What have you been watching on YouTube lately?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts

Discover the Benefits of Joining a Book Club in English

Image
  The CET Book Club is starting soon! And what could be a better way of starting a Book Club in English -  for speakers of other languages at intermediate (B1) level or above -  than by reading the transformational gem,  The Art of Communicating , by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, live on zoom together? Very often, students and clients report that although they understand it very well, they feel stuck, anxious or unable to communicate in English satisfactorily, leading to a strong sense of loss of opportunity in their professional contexts. Part of the reason for this might be what I refer to as  undernourished English , that is, insufficient exposure to English through reading and listening.  The CET Book Club in English will address this directly by offering you the opportunity to develop your English language skills through the option of reading the corresponding chapter first, and then by following the transcript as you listen to one of us reading it out loud live during our weekly me
Read more

The MBA and the Eight Worldly Winds

Image
  I completed the Inner MBA over the weekend!  Well done, me! ⭐️ But wait! Don't go. Before clicking "Like" and moving on, read about how earning this Certificate is interconnected with The Eight Worldly Winds . What are The Eight Worldly Winds? According to Buddhist teachings, our human nature necessarily means that we will all experience, at one time or another, being " blown about " (that's deeply affected in the moment) by the Eight Worldly Winds (or Conditions): gain and loss status and disgrace (or success and failure) praise and censure (or praise and blame) pleasure and pain This is great news when the Winds brings gain, status/success, praise and pleasure, but not so good when they carry loss, disgrace/failure, censure/blame, or pain. We all try to find ways of reducing our distress when the winds of the world bring devastating storms of suffering to our doorstep. It is our natural instinct to protect ourselves from the pain of the four (unpleasant
Read more