I call myself Jonah Skye. This is not the name my parents gave me. It’s one that I chose for myself about six years ago when I was out in Joshua Tree. There’s something about being out there in the desert that is very powerful. It’s simple. There’s no obvious sign of the urban environment that we’ve grown so accustomed to. And in that simplicity I feel a deeper connection to what might be called spirit or soul or god or mother earth. So there I was with two friends sitting in a circle on the earth as the sun set. I was at a transitional stage in my life - in between relationships, about to leave home for a long-term volunteer project, and generally doing a lot of spiritual seeking/reading/shifting. I was in my late twenties and trying to find my true self. I’m not really sure how it started, but each of us decided to change our names that night. Star Smoke went first, then Pilgrim Party, and then Jonah Skye. Skye refers to the Isle of Skye off of Scotland and represents my ancient past. I later read the Book of Jonah in the Bible to find out more about that name. Luckily, it’s the shortest book in the Bible (I think, really short, anyway). Basically, though, god gives Jonah the task of spreading his message. Jonah stalls and stutters and blows off these instructions several times, but each time gets a new chance to try again. I interpret this as a story about trying to live our lives as closely as we can to what our true self or soul is craving. Being our self is not as easy as it seems. There are a lot of distractions in this world and we end up following the lead of others for much of our lives. So, by calling myself Jonah I am able to remind myself to be real and true and find my own path in this place.
Tuesday Log
Run 7
Bike 11 (just crossed over 1000 miles this year!)
Drinks 0 (and only a little bit shaky/groggy).
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