Playing Parts
“All the world’s a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts”
– William Shakespeare, from As You Like It
If New Year’s Day is the day of hope and dreams and resolutions for the future, then January 2nd is the day when the rubber hits the road. It’s the day after that first day at the gym, that first day of not eating carbs or that first day of writing in earnest. On the journey of becoming more, it’s when you feel the pull of gravity from the pile of distractions. And sure enough here I am on the day after the New Day, working through my morning routine, slightly modified for location, with a look at the clock and the tasks ahead. The sky is dark and the glow from the laptop shines a spotlight on the actor, still unsure of his lines but chipping away at it nonetheless.
This morning I am still on Cape Cod, with the sky brightening and the jetty calling. The writing incomplete, the day job tapping me on the shoulder saying “get going” but that jetty calling, so I bundled up and went out anyway, task list be damned. It was one of those mornings where the cold breeze cuts deep through your layers, mocking your attempts to control Mother Nature. I walked all the way out and watched the clouds turn from gray to blue to pink. The pink is viral, starting in the east and spreading across the sky, deepening to a rose as it moves, and then almost as quickly it begins to fade as the light grows. Such are the sunrises. You have to embrace the moment at hand before it all fades away to the waking world.
There’s always something to distract you here. But I’m grateful that this visit has shaken me loose from the cobwebs of routine. Really, that’s why I come here. Today is a back-to-work day, and I confess I’ve already checked the numbers, scanned the email and taken note of people to call. The day job waits impatiently for the actor to return to the stage to read his lines. As with all of us, I’m one man in his time playing many parts, and it’s time to turn into that other character for the next act. Now what was that first line again?