A wonderful sheep

I finally did it! I upgraded my WordPress plan and am updating my blog to reflect my latest creative interests. This has been on my to-do list for a while, and it only took a few, still unaccounted for Instagram snafus to finally push me to take the plunge.

The inspiration behind my blog name comes from a story about Pablo Neruda mentioned in William Zinsser’s book, Writing About Your Life. Neruda describes how he was playing behind his house one day when he discovered a hole in the fence:

“I looked through the hole and saw a landscape like the one behind our house….. I moved back a few steps, because I sensed vaguely that something was about to happen. All of a sudden a hand appeared–a tiny hand of a boy about my own age. By the time I came close again again, the hand was gone, and in its place was marvelous white toy sheep. The sheep’s wool was faded. Its wheels had escaped. All of this only made it more authentic. I had never seen such a wonderful sheep.”

Pablo Neruda, essay “Childhood and Poetry”

Neruda returns the random act of gift with his own treasure, a big pine cone. And he goes on to reflect on how this simple exchange in his childhood influenced his poetry, giving it light.

“I have been a lucky man. To feel the intimacy of brothers is a marvelous thing in life. To feel the love of people whom we love is a fire that feeds our life. But to feel the affection that comes from those whom we do not know, from those unknown to us, who are watching over our sleep and our solitude, over our dangers and our weaknesses–that is something still greater and more beautiful because it widens out the boundaries of our being, and unites all living things.”

Pablo Neruda, essay “Childhood and Poetry”

I chose to reference Neruda’s toy sheep in my handle because I want my online space to reflect the sentiment behind the exchange: a simple and random act of kindness. A little present, just because. And in this modern age, this can extend to share with strangers on the Internet, because sharing and posting online takes a little bit of courage (especially for a very private person like myself), but also comes with its own rewards. I want to share my creative endeavors beyond the limitations of my humble little life to those unknown to me, to widen the boundaries of my being.