Hey guys, I welcome you all to the world of my mind and its
nonsense. I apologize if things get graphic. If you cannot handle it, please run
do not walk to your nearest exit. Anyways, I was sitting around reading the
selections about Julian Norwich and something struck me as absolutely insane.
This women being an anchoress would pretty much sit and rot in an itty-bitty
living space not much bigger than a giants’ breadbox. Basically, after I heard
about this woman and her wee living arrangements, I had no choice but to check
up on how exactly these folks lived. I had to look through Google images and
see for myself how unfortunate a living space these really were.
If you refer to the picture to the left, these holes in the wall
were literally holes in the wall. These rooms are NOT for the faint of heart or
the weak minded. But if you find your only necessities are sleep, eat,
defecate, and rinse and repeat, then congratulations you are ready for your
life as an anchoress ----- or a teenager. See if you have ever looked up
pictures of where hermits live, they have it a lot better. They get to live in
a cabin in the woods all alone amongst the animals, the plants, and nature
overall. Actually, that sounds like my definition of a good way of living.
Easy, Relaxing, and Comforting. But then again, my definition of a good time is
sleeping on the dirt in and amongst scary and sometimes unwelcoming critters.
Honestly, the one main concern id have in situations of
living alone or with god? What the hell can one possibly do to keep themselves
busy for years at a time without any connection to the outside world or other
people (at least for the most part). I would literally lose my mind and would
end up talking to the dust bunnies, bugs, or even a sports ball id call Wilson.
Cabin fever would be my worst enemy in solitude. I’m sure there are people who
can last exorbitantly long spans of time talking to themselves and meditating,
but if the reality TV Show, Anchoress Factor, ever came on id be out by the
first round. Another issue id think about in such a situation is exercise. I
mean how much physical activity can you get in a box that is smaller than that woman’s
shoe house in that fairytale. I mean I guess you would not live very long without
exercise so it would in retrospect make your time in that box significantly
shorter, but what do I know. Anyways, hope you’ve enjoyed my nonsense for this
evening, seeya later on.
(Had to do it)
When I was reading about the anchors too, I was thinking what I would do in that type of situation. I cannot even imagine how incredibly boring it would be. I mean don't get me wrong, I love alone time, and I am not big on talking to people, but for my whole life?! Nope. Couldn't do it. All you could do is stare at the wall and think about God. Yes, thoughts about God are time consuming because there are many things to consider, but not everyday of your life. I give Julian props for dedicating her life to this. She had to be one strong woman.
ReplyDeleteI could never be in such a small area for so long. Some days I feel like Julian because my room is so small, but then I remember that she didn't have to stay there. She could have left. Nope, she wanted to devote her life to describing how her connection with God was so powerful. You go, Glen CoCo...aka Julian. More power to you.
ReplyDeleteI like that you went beyond the readings and did some research. This is insane. I am claustrophobic and definitely need my energy from other people or else I am not that productive. While this might be good for finals week, I could never do this for a lifetime. It's interesting because when I think of doing god's work, I imagine being out in the world helping people hands-on with service work and this wouldn't allow that. This would make sure all their work was visions and thinking and reflection. I don't think it would be boring if this was your passion and your life's work, but definitely an interesting lifestyle to choose.
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