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EARTH DAY, CLAY, & ROMANCE
What do they all have in common? A lot actually. At the most basic and most moving levels.
C. Brian Smith contacted me about an article he was writing for MEL magazine on “The Male Glaze: The Very Manly Pursuit of Ceramics” and asked me to speak to the significance of the movie Ghost in the realm of cinematic sex/romance?
It seems a lot of people are getting their hands into the earth these days. Brian examines the growing popularity of pottery-making and its relationship with connectedness, creativity, control, romance, and sensuality.
Here’s my take on romance, clay, and our deep connection with the Earth.
 The famous pottery scene in Ghost is absolutely without a doubt one of the most sensual and romantic scenes in the entire history of film. Why? I think it’s because it touches us on so many levels. It’s often said that we exist on four planes: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual/creative. These days when so many do not have much in the way of actual physical connections with others, seeing two people in love reveling in the physicality of the clay together with their own bodies speaks to that deep need we all have for the exquisite joy of actual contact with another.
It’s rather life-affirming if you think about it. In many creation myths we humans are fashioned out of clay, the dust of the earth, the waters of the seas. The breath of life and consciousness animates that clay and human life begins. Working with clay, taking a shapeless form and making something new from it, puts us in the position of deities creating order out of chaos.
Given that now so much is automated and so many of us have lost literal touch with the world around us, this sensual love scene reminds us that every lover is intent upon molding the beloved into our ideal. It’s like that Greek myth about Pygmalion the sculptor creating the statue of Galatea, the perfect girl. Aphrodite, the goddess of romantic love, rewards the mortal for his devotion and brings Galatea to life. That mythic theme is played out in My Fair Lady and also in another Patrick Swayze film, Dirty Dancing.
Now besides the obvious sexual symbolism of that glistening tower of clay between Demi Moore’s legs and the slathering of the primitive element over the lovers’ bodies, you also have the co-creation of new forms as she and Patrick Swayze together make something new. And isn’t that what romance is all about – bringing two formerly separate things together to create something new, be it the relationship or the insights or sometimes even a new human being.
When writing my movie guide-book ROMANTIC COMEDIES These Films Can Save Your Love Life I had four criteria for deciding which of the hundreds of rom-coms to include. Each film had to exhibit one or more of these qualities: Idealism, Joy, Passion, and Dignity. Surely Ghost meets all those. If only it had actually been a romantic comedy it would have been included in the book.
People who work in clay have a direct connection with the basic element of our physical existence, which for many helps ground their often dis-connected emotional, mental, and creative selves. The creativity involved can be likened to the creativity inherent in falling in love. Though you’re doing things humans have done for millennia, it is still excitingly, beautifully new each time someone falls in love.
Some of the best commentary on pottery comes from the 11th century Persian poet Omar Khayyam in his book The Rubaiyat.
On how love frees us from the bonds of our physical bodies:
“Why, if the Soul can fling the Dust aside,
And naked on the Air of Heaven ride,
Were’t not a Shame — were’t not a Shame for him
In this clay carcass crippled to abide?”
In Ghost we see played out on screen Khayyam’s poignant advice:
“Then to the Lip of this poor earthen Urn
I lean’d, the Secret of my Life to learn:
And Lip to Lip it murmur’d — “While you live,
“Drink! — for, once dead, you never shall return.”
Ghost gave us a rich and vivid example of how a deep connection with the earth can help us soar beyond our bodies and together touch the Heavens.
And given that the story is about death and loss, grief and comfort, the Persian poet again offers excellent insight that includes a piece of pottery:
“So when that Angel of the darker Drink
At last shall find you by the river-brink,
And, offering his Cup, invite your Soul
Fourth to your Lips to quaff — you shall not shrink.”
How marvelous if one’s work in ceramics not only calms but also uplifts, enlightens, and connects you to the deepest and highest aspects of life itself… as well as Love.
— Find 100 more movies dealing with all sorts of love [young, lost, regained, mature, reluctant, and more] in the movie guide-book ROMANTIC COMEDIES.
And meanwhile, may your own connections with the Earth and each other be rich and fulfilling for all.
“This has all happened before. It will all happen again.”
So goes the quote from the mythic, marvelous TV series “Battlestar Galactica”. And yet….
Pamela Jaye with BSG actor Jamie Bamber*
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The rites and rituals of this past Holiday Season get us thinking about cycles and how to either perpetuate or move past those patterns, be they earth-based, socio-political, or personal. Becoming aware of these repetitions and how they affect us can be the first step to either aligning with what’s going on for a smoother ride or deciding it’s time to shake things up and set some new patterns.
Many spiritual and scientific systems recognize and extrapolate on repeating patterns and the changes within and upon those cycles. In Hindu cosmology the universe itself is repeatedly created and destroyed and the length of some cycles are in the billions of years. That rather puts our daily dramas in perspective. We’re said to be now in the cycle of Kali Yuga, a Dark Age of contention and decay. Yep, kind of seems that way, doesn’t it?
 However, around and through every darkness can be light and lest we forget, the Renaissance, the Age of Enlightenment, and the Age of Reason followed the Dark Ages in Europe. This was aided in great part by the Islamic culture that flourished when Europe was huddling in mud huts. Islamic scholars and artists both preserved Greek and Roman literature and science, and made their own giant strides in many fields, including architecture, astronomy, and medicine. One upside of the Crusades for Europe was a re-introduction to its own history via the exposure to the cultures of the Levant and Egypt.
In “BSG” the last remnants of humanity after the attack of the Cylons (rebellious AI machines created by humans) are searching the galaxy for Earth, the 13th colony. Full of references to Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian mythologies, the series examines personal-professional-political relationships, the existence of deities and other realities, loyalties, courage, love, betrayal, humans vs. technology, and lots of fine action. It’s definitely worth a binge.
Stories of the creation and preservation of wisdom and fine art in times of chaos and decline can inspire us to be part of the cure, to be bringers of the new ways, to envision and then embody the next Renaissance. And these days, we certainly do need one.
Millions of people are working effectively to bring about positive changes for millions of others, whether on the physical, emotional, mental, or creative levels. A challenge for you for this new yearly cycle – What is the world you want to see and how can you help create it? One way is to find some innovative organization that inspires you and think of how you can contribute to the concept, if not to their actual work.
For you media-makers — It’s often said that masculine stories go in one direction while feminine stories are cyclic. Rather than one or the other, advances can be made by combining the two to create a spiral. Then you can take your story characters – or yourself – on a spiraling upward pattern of greater growth and awareness.
MYTHWORKS offers consultations on story as well as for you personally.
MYTHIC CHALLENGES: Create Stories that Change the World
* I was privileged to meet one of my heroes, the actor Jamie Bamber, who played Captain Lee “Apollo” Adama in the fabulous TV series Battlestar Galactica. He was the President of the Jury for the 2017 Marseille WebFest (where I was one of the Mentors at the Writers Residency). Jamie’s gentlemanly demeanor and enthusiastic support for media creators was a positive part of the MWF.
BOXING DAY UNBOXED
“People with convictions are convicts. What you believe imprisons you.”
Robert Anton Wilson
Today is Boxing Day. Let’s think about this a bit differently than tradition offers.
Anything that IS and has it’s own unique identity is in a container. Your body is contained by your skin. Your home is contained by its walls. A marriage is contained by the identity, privileges and constraints of the culture. A religion (from the Latin word religare, meaning ‘to bind’) is contained by its dogma. Political parties have platforms that supposedly contain the ideals and ideal actions of its leaders and constituents.
Anything that defines also confines. What defines you right now?
Age, gender, ethnicity, language, profession, media preferences in books-movies-music-TV, hobbies, school grades, generational labels, religions and creeds, interpretations of history and pre-history, psychological precepts, politics, sports, clubs, food preferences, exercise or the lack thereof…. As many things as there are, are in containers, boxes.
Many of our most lasting myths and popular media tell stories about someone breaking out of a box, whether it’s a coming-of-age story, a stealing-fire-from-heaven story, the rebels against the empire story, the independence from the dysfunctional relationship story, or any of those stories we need to keep hearing.
So here’s a challenge for you to step Outside The Box.
Which of your own Boxes would you want to break through to explore other ways of being, other information, other inspiration, other worlds? Or which do you not want to leave…which perhaps makes it the one you’d do well to look outside of, at least for a little while.
“Each man is the hostage of his own deeds.”
The Mountain: The Koran
Learn some conversational phrases in a different language, watch media different from your usual genres, or if you’re constantly consuming news-views-fake news-social media give it a rest for a week or so, read books you’d never otherwise think of reading, explore cuisines new to you, watch newscasts of the opposing political bent or attend religious services foreign to you and seriously try to understand that point of view, search other cultures’ mythologies for similarities, investigate some unfamiliar science, select a character or archetype different from your usual persona and act as if you are that for a day or so.
Travel is an excellent way to gain new eyes on the world. With today’s technology you can do a lot of traveling without leaving your desk or your recliner. Take yourself on a tour of places totally foreign to you.
What other break-out things can you think of for yourself or others to do?
Make your thoughts and deeds be dedicated to freedom, civility, dignity, expansion of mind and spirit, compassion, and joy.
Think, Act, Be – Outside the Boxes
Boxing Day tradition explained.
More thought-provoking and mind-freeing quotes by Robert Anton Wilson.
To discover more about your own boxes and how to both use their benefits and consciously plan your expansions, I offer consultations on the ArchePaths. Are you on the Path of the Warrior, Clergy, Scientist, Magician, Lover? What Path do you want to next explore to become a more balanced and effective individual? Free 15 minute consult.
And don’t be like a guest at the Eagles’ “Hotel California”, where – “You can check out any time you like, But you can never leave!”
WORDS OF WISDOM
from Men in Black, and Bill and Ted
Gratitude. Compassion. Passion.
That’s what screenwriter Ed Solomon suggested we all have in his presentation at the Marseille WebFest in France. Along with many other credits, Solomon wrote two of my favourites: “Men in Black” and “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”.
Pamela Jaye, Marx Pyle, Kathie Fong Yoneda, Ed Solomon
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Here’s a quote from the former:
“A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it. Fifteen hundred years ago everybody knew the Earth was the center of the universe. Five hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth was flat, and fifteen minutes ago, you knew that humans were alone on this planet. Imagine what you’ll know tomorrow.”
Truly – Just imagine what you’ll know tomorrow…if you keep an open and curious mind, apply rational thinking, and use the scientific method.
And another timely quote for today’s troubled world from those 20th century American philosophers Bill and Ted, “Be excellent to each other.”
at StoryBoard Development Group meeting for MIB3
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Me as a Man in Black – at the fabulous StoryBoard Development Group. Do check them out; they’re my favourite group of thoughtful, talented, fun, outspoken writers and they’ve been doing this since 1981. I’ve been presenting there for over twenty years and always enjoy it. Plus you’ll learn a lot about story development and can contribute to the group’s knowledge bank.
Danger is the doorway, via death, back to Paradise; hence its draw.
Myths are the stories we tell ourselves to explain the world around us and within us.
When we are mindful of every nuance of our natural world, we finally get the picture:
that we are only given one dazzling moment of life here on Earth, and we must stand before that reality both humbled and elevated, subject to every law of our universe and grateful for our brief but intrinsic participation with it.
— Elizabeth Gilbert (From her biography of naturalist Eustace Conway.)
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