Cryin' Mayans in the Year of the Magic Dragon

As 2011 became 2012 - The Year of the Dragon! The year that I intend to make the most significant one of my life so far - I was sleeping soundly.

I've become quite a believer in the power of ritual over the last few years, so I'd decided to shave my face & head to start the new year "fresh" and follow up with a run so as to spend the first moment of the new year engaged in the activity that 2012 will largely revolve around for me.

Neither of these things happened... but there's no need to get too down on myself about it. After all, when I went to bed at 7:15pm on December 31st - intending only to take a nap - I'd been awake for over a day-and-a-half, having transferred the contents of my old apartment in Southern California into a small moving truck and then driven 8 hours North to Santa Rosa with my two cats to move us into my Aunt's house. (Actually, my cats and I were in my trusty 2000 Year of the Dragon! Hyundai. My Dad drove the truck. And took a Greyhound back home! SuperDad.)

So, no surprise: my nap turned into an 11-hour sleepathon, and the run had to wait until the the late morning of 1/1/12.

2012. The approach of this year has been anticipated and discussed like no other year since the turn of the Century. Some believe that on 12/21/2012 - the day that the ancient Mayan calendar "ends" - the world will also come to an end. Others believe that what will end is not the existence of our planet but rather humanity's presence upon it, by way of one or a combination of several events: nuclear annihilation, global-warming-related weather catastrophes, spontaneous combustion due to a shift in the Earth's polar magnetism (OK, I don't think the "polar-shift" theorists actually think that this cosmic cataclysm would result in mass human immolation, but since I haven't researched this I'm just going to say that they do), etc, etc.

Other people look upon the significance of the coming Winter Solstice in a more positive way: Mankind is headed for an evolution. Maybe the people of the Earth will revolt against the oppressive forces of government and start a peaceful, one-world society that respects all races, creeds, and cultures. Maybe we will transcend these Earthly vessels and become ascended, psychic beings of pure white light and energy. Or aliens from a more technologically and culturally advanced planet will come and save us from ourselves.

Most people probably aren't really buying into all the hype and just believe that this will be another year like any other.

Since reading "2012: The return of Quetzalcoatl" by Daniel Pinchbeck in early 2008, my perspective on the significance of The Year of The Winter of Mayan Cryin' has gone from skeptical to pessimistic to optimistic to neutral to something a little more difficult to pin down. At this point, I really have no opinion about what may or may not occur 11 months and 21 days from now. However, I do believe that what we each feel about this date says a lot about who we are. Having thought about the whole phenomenon quite a bit in the last several years, I can look back at each of the different attitudes I've held and realize that what I felt fear or hope or indifference towards at different times was not so much the future of the Earth or humanity but rather the state of my Self. At this point I view 2012 the way I view almost everything and everyone in this lifetime: As a mirror.

More and more, what interests me about 2012 isn't what might be fated to occur, but rather what humanity can potentially manifest through massive amounts of energy being concentrated on a particular point in our future.

I am not a religious man, but I've read about studies that seem to indicate that when large numbers of people gather in prayer, directing collective energy toward the hope of manifesting a specific occurrence in some far-flung location, measurable results have been observed. Modern studies into quantum physics seem to indicate that the basic elements of life behave differently when under observation. Theoretical, psychic phenomena involving such things as projection and manifestation are gradually pushing inward from the fringes of science into the realms of academia.

This year, i am going to (literally) run on the assumption that humanity does have the ability to manifest a better world, and that the collective energy projected upon the upcoming Winter Solstice can be harnessed and shaped into something made of love, empathy, and righteousness. Because, why not? If one believes - or even chooses to believe - that the intentions and actions of oneself and one's fellow brothers and sisters can change the world, what is preventing us from creating that better world? We may all have different ideas about what that world might look like; however, if constructed from the vibration, light, and energy that radiates from the core of personal truth, I believe it will look about the way we want it to.

Did the ancient Mayans intend for us to believe that the "end" of their Calender meant anything more than the end of a 26,000-year cosmic cycle? I don't know, but I'd be surprised if they were really putting too much thought into how the people of some civilization in the distant future might interpret their studies of astronomy. What I'm talking about is just finding the joy in the mystery of what holds our collective attention and allowing ourselves to play with the metaphors instead of trying to control the facts. This might be nothing more than an exercise in self-deception, but you could say that about any perspective of reality, really. I choose to focus on beautiful possibilities, and to subvert cynicism and the fear of being seen as foolish.

It's cool; because I am a fool. And a dreamer.

So I quit my job.

On the first day of Spring ( I should say, the traditional Spring Equinox on March 21st) - which also happens to be my 36th birthday - I will leave my new, temporary home in Santa Rosa and go on a 9-month run. During that time, I will keep a daily blog. Each day's posts will begin with the dreams of the previous night. I will hold these dreams in my mind throughout the day and take note of people and places that remind me of certain things from the dreams. All of these things I will take as significant signs from The Universe infused with great meaning and guiding potential. Part of me believes that this is how the Universe and one's psyche actually operate; that everything we dream, everyone we meet, every feeling and thought that comes to us is a sign. I don't believe this fully; but I'd like to believe it and see no reason to fear being wrong. Like my Aunt says, It's all about choices.

Shortly after finishing Daniel Pinchbeck's book, I ran my first Marathon. I'd been a cross-country runner back in high school but hadn't done any running - or much of anything else to keep in shape - since then. Over the last four years, running - combined with a healthy diet - has transformed my mind, body, and spirit. Distance running offers a sense of freedom and mental clarity like nothing else I have experienced.

For these three months that I'll be spending in Northern California before taking off, I will focus on dream journaling, blogging, meeting people, and running up to 4 hours a day. That is what I'll be doing for the rest of the year, so I need to get ready.

It's funny, but I've been planning this blog for so long and now that I'm writing it I can't help but feel like I don't know what to write about or how to explain things the way I want to. I've conveyed so little of the plan that has been developing in my mind slowly for well over a year. However, I know that if I just am patient with myself my writing will develop and gain more clarity and focus. I do have specific ideas about how to do this that are inspired by both dream journaling and by my brother - a fellow dreamer and the best writer who I know. I'll get into that later. Or maybe just write.