It's a time of revelations and discoveries and I am loving every second of it.
1. I think I've gotten a clearer grasp on how to work with impediments through my impediment work on my spoon river. The biggest thing is that through the doing, you have to get it into your BODY. Your body must adjust and take on the impediment with practice and trial and error. And then comes a moment when you feel it organically becomes a part of you. I also felt it's imperative that your body is free of tension when working on them.
Another big thing I learned was how to allow my rage/emotion to filter THROUGH my impediment. With rage, I automatically became tense and energized which steered me away from my impediment of hemiplegia and severe muscle weakness. I thought my emotion and my impediment weren't compatible at all. But David told me to work on the physicality separately first, and then in class to do my emotional prep and allow that to trickle through the impediment I had been working on. And sure enough, I felt that I could still communicate my rage though paralyzed and weak. A very good learning experience.
2. I don't know what I've done this week, but I feel a lot more open, receptive and fluid this week. Imaginary circumstances kick me in the heart and gut with surprising speed and force. A hug makes me tear up. The play I was reading this week made me tear up. Seeing Park Dae Sung's paintings filled me with deep awe. Reading a Humans of New York post filled me with hope and warmth. Ok, I must sound like a raging hippie but it's the truth. And I quite like this. I want to keep experiencing the world in this state of being. This week of openness particularly makes me contemplate on the value of kindness. Kindness that celebrates people for who they are. Kindness that brightens someone's day. Kindness that enables people to reach their dreams. How can I become a kinder person?
3. Meeting artist Park Dae Sung was very inspiring. Overcoming the loss of his parents and his left hand to become a great artist made me think of how strong and triumphant the human soul is. His motto of '불편당','lean into the discomfort' resonated with me as I continue my journey as an actor. To acknowledge that suffering and discomfort are what elevate us into a higher state of being, and to embrace that process. Such an extraordinary thing, life.
