***Update: I did end up meeting Keanu Reeves in 2018. You know how they say, "don't meet your idols?" Lol...
At a book signing in Los Angeles, I shook his hand, chatted with him a bit, and then he cut me off while speaking. I was a bit insulted, to be honest. Perhaps I was speaking too softly and it's a misunderstanding, but it felt pretty rude and abrupt the way he did it. After meeting him, I didn't work on that screenplay for about 5 years! I mostly lost interest in the script and then life got kind of crazy. I did realize though, how I have often been inclined to make idols out of people, in the sense that I put them before God. Now, I am thankful for being given this opportunity to learn and grow, and to become better for God. I still am grateful for what was awakened within me. He did ignite something special. It was inside me all along! I still took a lot of artistic inspiration from him which became part of me.
And I actually did end up learning how to ride, too, by the way. I got my motorcycle license... I never got my own motorcycle or continued riding, but I did what I set out to do and gained the experience. I know I can do anything I set out to do.
***
Over the past several months, I have been experiencing a series of synchronicities in my life, all connecting in some way to Keanu. So--I started paying attention and followed these gentle (and sometimes not so gentle!) nudges from the universe. It's as if I'd been asleep for a long time and have just begun to awaken again. He ignited me. He sparked inspiration--the creative juice of the universe! The screenplay I'm writing now was inspired by him and I have to thank him for that. I've had this story inside me for a while and his words are what brought it all to life. His art inspired my art. Also, thanks partly to him, I have found my spirit medicine from the Black Wolf, which I will explain more later. I think Keanu has some black wolf in him, too.
The thing that particularly inspired me was a comment he made on his art book, Shadows, that he co-created with artist Alexandra Grant. He said,
The thing that particularly inspired me was a comment he made on his art book, Shadows, that he co-created with artist Alexandra Grant. He said,
"Is fear tied to shadow? Yes. But shadow is also pretty cool... you can make rabbits."
I'm not sure if he even knows how deep that was. Or maybe he does. It's so simple yet so profound and very symbolic. It's taking something dark, and making it into something pure. There's a certain childlike profundity to it that's almost like the channeled information I would sometimes receive from spirit guides. Something simple, but beautiful--a profound concept communicated in a way we can understand as humans. The image of the shadow rabbits and the Jungian concept of the shadow really resonated with me, as I had been dabbling again with some shamanic shadow work, soul retrieval and journeying recently. The word "Shaman", itself, means "to burn" or to "set on fire" (pretty metal lol), so I was drawn to the idea of taking that darkness and holding it up to the light. Setting it on fire, and purifying it. Keanu's words sparked an idea that inspired the opening scene of my screenplay and helped me develop the whole theme.
I even took some creative influence from his motorcycle riding. I started re-reading the book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, which I had read ten years ago and drew some inspiration from that. I always loved that book and how the narrator slowly reveals the character "Phaedrus", at first as a ghost, and then as part of his divided identity. It examines philosphical concepts, the beauty of nature, the "ghosts" we all believe in, the classic vs. romantic understanding of the world and how the buddha can reside as comfortably in the gears of a motorcycle as he does at the top of a mountain or in the petals of a flower (Kind of Feynman-esque). My Phaedrus in my story is female, and I am determined to encapsulate a depth, intrigue, vulnerabilty, intelligence and strength within the character. I might decide to do some "research" and try riding, myself.
I will share one of my little meaningful coincidences with you, which led to my discovering the spirit medicine of the Black Wolf...
After a day of treating myself to a massage, coffee and some new books, I drove home--totally blissed out--in the cool evening mountain air, blasting The Clash in the car. It was these two books that I was particularly drawn to and bought them without hesitation.
Medicine Woman (great story!) and the other is my journal. It wasn't until I got home and started reading Medicine Woman that I noticed the name "Reeves" was on the very first page, credited for illustrations.
This book has brought me the spirit of the Black Wolf. I feel a strong connection to the black wolf lately. Late at night when I take my walks alone under the stars, I feel myself becoming the black wolf...stalking in the shadows--a love affair with the moon. The black wolf is described as wearing the "black cloak of contemplation". He is more introverted, as opposed to the white wolf who is more extroverted. He tracks through the forests for what he wants, then he comes back to his pack to curl up in the sun and think about it. He's very loyal and protective of his pack. A lonesome loner, and supposedly a "lone wolf that is afraid to be alone". I don't know if the latter is necessarily true, for me anyway. There are times when I want to be and times when I don't. I think Keanu's definitely got that black wolf spirit in him.
Creative inspiration goes hand-in-hand with synchronicity, because they both come from the same universal energy--sexual energy. When we feel like we're in the right "groove" we're letting this energy flow through us freely. That is what we are tapping into when we create and when we are inspired. It's how the universal potential for creation is made manifest in this material plane. Whether we are creating art, music, films, cooking, or even bringing a new life into the world...that is when humans, I think, are at their most beautiful. When we are expressing ourselves authentically as reflections of the universe (As above, so below). It's why we are all here, really. To create, to love, and to inspire one another.
I have again found the voice of the poet--the shaman's spirit--that I had tucked away in the cobwebs of my soul. I'm hoping someday a string will connect our paths together so that I can thank Keanu in person for being a source of creative inspiration. He truly is rare and unique soul, and his light has definitely shined on me.
I even took some creative influence from his motorcycle riding. I started re-reading the book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, which I had read ten years ago and drew some inspiration from that. I always loved that book and how the narrator slowly reveals the character "Phaedrus", at first as a ghost, and then as part of his divided identity. It examines philosphical concepts, the beauty of nature, the "ghosts" we all believe in, the classic vs. romantic understanding of the world and how the buddha can reside as comfortably in the gears of a motorcycle as he does at the top of a mountain or in the petals of a flower (Kind of Feynman-esque). My Phaedrus in my story is female, and I am determined to encapsulate a depth, intrigue, vulnerabilty, intelligence and strength within the character. I might decide to do some "research" and try riding, myself.
I will share one of my little meaningful coincidences with you, which led to my discovering the spirit medicine of the Black Wolf...
After a day of treating myself to a massage, coffee and some new books, I drove home--totally blissed out--in the cool evening mountain air, blasting The Clash in the car. It was these two books that I was particularly drawn to and bought them without hesitation.
Medicine Woman (great story!) and the other is my journal. It wasn't until I got home and started reading Medicine Woman that I noticed the name "Reeves" was on the very first page, credited for illustrations.
This book has brought me the spirit of the Black Wolf. I feel a strong connection to the black wolf lately. Late at night when I take my walks alone under the stars, I feel myself becoming the black wolf...stalking in the shadows--a love affair with the moon. The black wolf is described as wearing the "black cloak of contemplation". He is more introverted, as opposed to the white wolf who is more extroverted. He tracks through the forests for what he wants, then he comes back to his pack to curl up in the sun and think about it. He's very loyal and protective of his pack. A lonesome loner, and supposedly a "lone wolf that is afraid to be alone". I don't know if the latter is necessarily true, for me anyway. There are times when I want to be and times when I don't. I think Keanu's definitely got that black wolf spirit in him.
Creative inspiration goes hand-in-hand with synchronicity, because they both come from the same universal energy--sexual energy. When we feel like we're in the right "groove" we're letting this energy flow through us freely. That is what we are tapping into when we create and when we are inspired. It's how the universal potential for creation is made manifest in this material plane. Whether we are creating art, music, films, cooking, or even bringing a new life into the world...that is when humans, I think, are at their most beautiful. When we are expressing ourselves authentically as reflections of the universe (As above, so below). It's why we are all here, really. To create, to love, and to inspire one another.
I have again found the voice of the poet--the shaman's spirit--that I had tucked away in the cobwebs of my soul. I'm hoping someday a string will connect our paths together so that I can thank Keanu in person for being a source of creative inspiration. He truly is rare and unique soul, and his light has definitely shined on me.
All the love and best intentions for the highest good,
Xoxo,
~Nicole~
Xoxo,
~Nicole~
No comments:
Post a Comment