Tag Archives: Sandwich

geography & identity

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I’m very curious about how our interior geography affects our moods and choices in life.  I find myself at nearly 50 years old realizing that I need a lot of spaciousness to feel most comfortable in my own skin.  I truly understand how growing up and forming my identity on the prairie instilled an interior geography within me. I want to understand this better.

prairie beach lillibridge interior geography

There is an eternal landscape, a geography of the soul; we search for its outlines all our lives.

—Josephine Hart, Irish novelist

I layered these images of flying into South Dakota and the Town Neck Beach approach in Sandwich, Massachusetts.  The vastness of the ocean gives me the same feeling of ease that the prairie gives me.  It doesn’t matter if I’m driving country roads in South Dakota or kayaking the Cape Cod Bay.  The inner feeling is the same.

I just ordered this book:  Geographical Psychology: Exploring the Interaction of Environment and Behavior by Peter J. Rentfrow, PhD.

“The research described in this volume indicates that personality, political ideology, well-being, happiness, human virtues, and personal concerns are related to several important geographic social indicators.”

I can’t wait to delve further into more understanding about this subject.  As always, I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas.

 

 

sorrow & joy

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I’ve experienced deep sorrow this week with the loss of a friend due to a long, painful illness.  Through that process I’ve realized what a unique gift sorrow can be in understanding ourselves and our place in the world.  I know that my friend would’ve been very open to a discussion about this topic—she had an enormous capacity to explore the psychology of the soul.

definition of sorrow

noun sor·row \ˈsär-(ˌ)ō, ˈsȯr-\

  • a feeling of sadness or grief caused especially by the loss of someone or something

  • :  a cause of grief or sadness

definition of joy

noun \ˈjȯi\

  • : a feeling of great happiness

  • : a source or cause of great happiness : something or someone that gives joy to someone

Sorrow & Joy I believe exist in the same place in our hearts.  They just feel a helluva lot different.  I feel that both emotions need each other to be fully acknowledged, accepted and better understood.  Thank you for this, my friend.