Bananas from Tonya's brain...

I have this ever nagging request within me the majority of my days to seek out adventure, freedom and the unknown. It's usually a welcomed and perpetual whisper that stirs inside of me. On other occasions though this whisper, although intoxicating can become squashing. It's a reminder that no matter how hard I may try to break free from the society I live in and it's demands, they are ever present and at times smothering. I find that there are those occasions where I become "stuck" in this life like a fly on sticky paper. The voice is hushed and lost amongst the noisy crowd of "have to's and musts" that fill my agenda. Ignored, these whispers soon follow with shouts to slow down or to just "be" still, reminding me to appreciate the moment. Some of these demands are not always my own. They may require my time or efforts, perhaps for a bigger purpose then myself? None the less, they'll still mask the longing to follow my heart and to find my much loved freedom. Thoreau once said that "men labor under mistake. Most men, even in this comparatively free country, through mere ignorance and mistake are so occupied with the factitious cares and superflously coarse labors of life that its finer fruits cannot be plucked by them." I'm well aware that my bank account will not find me this freedom no matter it's ballance. The brand of running shoes I place upon my feet will not give me this entitlement either. Although something I enjoy, neither my travel destinations, my kayak nor my random collection of CD's will sufice. These are not the "fruits" or freedoms in my life that I cherish. This freedom I seek and long for is a gift. It's a gift that I already have. It's understanding the value of my faith and the freedom that comes with it. It's sharing a cherished moments of good company with another. It's the joy found in an e-mail from a long lost friend. It's these "plumbs in my life that wake up the soul freeing my wings from it's sticky paper. It's the adventure of knowing that the fruit is there and available for it's taking. Adventure awaits for me around every corner. It matters not the demands of my day or the places they may bring me to. I'ts simply a matter of seeing the fruit trees in my life and knowing which of these fruits is the sweetest pick.