Hug Trees and Be a Good Human

Hippies.

We’ve all seen them.

They kind of come and go. Sometimes they come when we least expect it. Sometimes we wish they would just go. They tend to have a smell about them. It’s sort of like a mixture of curry teabags and armpit onions. I guess being a hippie means not bathing. I guess it means not minding the stink.

Well, I mind the stink. I mean, I am a hippie. Or so I have been told. But I have also been told that I do not smell… except, that I smell good. I bathe every day. I wear deodorant. I take pride in my hygiene. And I hope that is a good thing. For I do not judge those that do not. I can be disgusted by the smells, which is a natural reaction I think, but it does not mean I think less of those that smell. 

I just want less to do with them.

And it’s not because they are hippies. Heck no. I actually really like the hippie vibe and culture. It fills me with a feeling of inspired belonging; of community and like-mindedness. It is a spirituality that empowers my personal religion, in lieu of me actually having one… Religion, that is. I have created my own. For I tend to create my own things. My own belief systems. I do not follow others easily. The world is confusing to me. People are confusing too. And so, I have always had my own understanding of the world. My own belief system, from the resonating pieces of other belief systems. And how I have been able to piece the puzzling parts of everything together, to make some sense of it all… that works for me.

So why do I like hippies so much? Why out of any one established ideology did I latch onto this one? Well, if you had read my first blog entry, you would understand the answer to that a little more. But there is more to it than any of that. I think the reason that identity and lifestyle ideology clicks with me so well is it aligns with core values and traits that I feel most at home with.

Specifically, I value the idea of being more natural. Of striving for world peace. Giving love to others. Listening to acoustic music. Wearing colourful clothing, or clothing made from natural fibres, imported from more spiritual regions of the planet (Tibet, Nepal, India and Thailand). I believe in freedom of spirit, the interconnectedness of things, and supporting humans over capitalism, corporate interest, commercialism and greed. Making the world safer and more sustainable, for all. But most of all… I love trees. And I love hugging them.

So I guess I fit the label right there with that, alone.

And sometimes, I do feel alone.

I feel alone in this world, in my thinking and feeling. It seems that I have a difficult time connecting with others on levels where we can mutually relate with our exchanges. I feel like people all do and say the same thing, over and over again. That there is a perceivable limit to the amount of original thought. And I am ALL ABOUT original thought. Every day I wake up with a tingle and enticement to approach the world and life a little differently. I welcome new ideas, fresh perspectives and unique concepts. To me this is creativity at its finest. And I do love to create. I paint. I draw. And as you can tell, I also write.

I am a creative problem solver. I like to analyze things and break them down into their systems, so I can understand how things connect and as such, how they can be modified and repaired, if that is what is required. I love those little life hacks that I come up with. Especially when they actually work! And when I create visual art, I like to do my own thing… with very little planning. I enjoy starting with an image or idea of images, and shaping and tweaking it as I go, depending on hat intuitively feels good or right. Or pleasing to the eye, or my emotions. Sometimes this flow can produce a positive result with very little effort and paint, and sometimes I paint over and over and over trying to get it just right.

And I am okay with this.

paintdab.ca

Because the end result is all about the process, and not the product. The product is just a consequence of the process. And if you truly appreciate a work of art, you should try to visualize the process, if you can. Imagine what the artists had to do to get there. This is why we love to watch Bob Ross paint. For he talks us through the process. And that is infinitely more beautiful than his finished painting.

I think some of my paintings are beautiful. They are also trippy. They do not fit into any ‘box’ or ‘category’. In fact, I think there is nothing more gory, than category. People ask me what things are in my paintings, or what things mean. And I instead ask them what they mean to them. I much more appreciate what someone sees or feels when they see my art. This is why I prefer to not title my paintings, lest I bias the viewer own what to expect.

So yeah, being a trippy artist I guess also gives me that sense of being a hippie.

Though I must admit, I do not like pretentious hippies. And by that, I mean those that TRY to be hippie-like. They say all the words, they spew all the ideologies, they dress and act all groovy and spacey. But to me they feel phoney as phuck. And I don’t think not bathing or using deodorant is totally cool, man.

I think it totally stinks. I think we can be more pleasantly authentic.

Just hug trees and be a good human.