First of all, I’m a delight.
Second…
“Philosophy is the talk on a cereal box
Religion is the smile on a dog
I’m not aware of too many things
I know what I know, if you know what I mean”
– What I am, Edie Brickell & New Bohemians
This month, August 2025, I set out on a grand adventure – returning to the work I hold dear to my soul. Five contractor’s bags of trash, four carloads of donations, three shelves of books cleared, two stacks of totes, and a partridge in a pear tree later…this is what I have. (see pic below)
By the way, the gentlemen peering over my tripod is Thomas Merton, and he keeps watch over things. After Hildegard of Bingen and Joan of Arc, who are both also represented on my desk, Merton is my go to for finding calm in the world.
While I’m not particularly devoted to one particular faith system, the mystical aspects of my Catholic upbringing is this luminous thread that brings the tapestry of my beliefs together. In fact, I start my day with this prayer. Feel free to change the wording to suit your needs.
“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.”
- Thomas Merton, Thoughts in Solitude
Why, yes…that is Thomas Merton and I out standing in a field. It appears he’s been standing there a little longer than me, which has given him a nice patina.
So let me get back to my original thought when I say down to write…
Over the past 18 days I’ve learned that none of us are in Kansas anymore. Not that we ever were, but the expression fits. SEO, niche, content management, and other words that sound a lot like Charlie Brown’s teacher. Is everyone literally trying to sell themselves with every post/image/video? I mean, is this fun for you? When you sit down to create something are you thinking, “Oh, yeah, this is gonna boost my stats on (insert platform here)…yeah, this is S(E)O-OOOOO good.”
Maybe it was a little naive of me to think that I could just skip back into the creative world with my Pollyanna mindset, stories about being human, and a real desire for connection.
Oh, gods…does this mean I’m not cool anymore? Are the artificial stats trying to tell me something I don’t want to hear? Should I just go lay down in the yard, right now, and shake my fists at the clouds? Do you think people will know what I’m saying if I don’t keep to my most searched work?
Won’t someone think of the niche?
Okay…okay…that’s a little much, I know – but then again, so am I…and so are you. We – that’s you, me, and all the other humans out there – contain multitudes. And in that beautiful dance within us is a light that connects us to each other.
The everything in me sees the everything in you.
So I’m working on Part 4 of the painting story. I’ve got to write it without putting in any trigger words because the internet will get mad at me – which is proving to be very difficult. Plus, the editing team took the day off. The cats are napping, and the fairies just had some chocolate.
With that…I’m off.
Good day to all y’all,
~ KEU
If you find value in what I write, and want to support the team (aka the cats and fairies), please check out my ko-fi. Thanks!
Currently listening to: The Tales of KE Upton (Spotify playlist that has 22 hours of what I call “brain tunes”)
Currently reading: *taking a reading break for a few days
Kim Upton 
For 24 or 25 years that I’ve known you…I honestly can’t remember and don’t care to go back to LJ to look, you’ve been doing something creative and moving in some direction, sometimes forward, sometimes sideways, and that seems to keep you sane. You seem to be uniquely able to navigate change/chaos and integrate it into your life so it doesn’t throw you too far off track. I’ve always admired that tenacity in you.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you – it’s never a dull moment. Life is for living, and for experiencing little drops of joy.
LikeLike
That’s for sure. I’ve never seen the Upton household be bored!
LikeLiked by 1 person
We use the motto: “Adapt, improvise, and overcome” (h/t to Clint Eastwood in Heartbreak Ridge) liberally around here.
LikeLike
To be honest, I like clutter. I looked at an older pic you posted and thought it was a place I would feel comfortable in. My own clutter has its drawbacks, like trying to find my sunglasses. As far as everyone “selling” themselves, I agree. I think it’s the desire of having the cushy paid job in which you can just do what you want to do and be socially adored at the same time. Most social media giants are set up to trap people into that mindset. But, what I’m most concerned with is the fact that social problems have become a form of “entertainment”. (Sorry for the long message) Here’s a quote from someone I agree with. “The internet has gone from being a place of interaction, to a gigantic surveillance system,” said Mary Angela Bock, an associate professor in the University of Texas at Austin’s School of Journalism and Media. “We are being surveilled by our social media. They’re tracking us in exchange for entertaining us.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love long comments/replies. Makes things seem a little more human around here. My work station is almost always in a state of organized chaos, which is delightful to me – just as much as having a desk with a little more room.
That is an absolutely fantastic quote! It is very tight rope to walk, for sure. Trying to find my happy medium has been interesting in this return.
LikeLiked by 1 person