swishism

Today’s swishism is inspired by Carl Dennis’ excellent poem, The God who loves you“, via Jacob Sam La Rose’s miscellany.

swishism entry coulda woulda shoulda, regrets, vanity

The question caught me of guard about a fortnight ago, in a post from the  Samba blog.

It’s perhaps the one seeking question that finds our greatest potential hiding.

Today marks a change in the title format, I think a lot of this blog’s potential is yet to be realised and so more accessible post titles are hopefully a step towards progress.

significant.worth.is.still.hidden

PS: This illustration was done by Lakwena Suit, check her out.

swishism entry dont waste life, fear of failure, honesty, vision

I thought of saving this one for a really bad day, when I felt like doing something retaliatory after hearing something that offended me; but, ironically,  that’s the moment I’d be  least likely to want to let the matter lie.  Today, at least, when all is calm, I have the grace to shrug in advance  if it ‘kicks off’ tomorrow.

swishism entry choice, habit, ignorance, ignore, indifference

My laptop is broken, my internet connection is down. (I’m writing from my BlackBerry).

Just as well, ’cause I’ve got a shedload of writing and editing to do, before the week is out. Offline rules… sometimes.

Ps: fair enough this post makes my withdrawal not quite silent, but how else could I share this tip with my fellow creatives?

swishism entry grinding, offline, productivity

This is more of a double whammy, as it contains a pair of swishes. It’s taken from the opening piece in the book Selected Swishes

some.will.ignorantly.sing.hype to make a platinum disc double
some. will.illuminate.shrouded.hope at the end of the tunnel.

I guess it’s about choices. I’m often asked by kids I teach. “Have you heard of such and such emcee, or so so and so grime artist, and this is what I often feel like saying. In fact, next time I think I will.

swishism entry choice, hope

Pleased to announce another  beneficiary for the swishism campaign. We’ll also be donating proceeds from the eventual book to the amazingly productive and community-transforming charity, Empart.  The story is an audacious vision much like the charity Room To Read the other charity that book aims to support.

Extra motivation for me, as I’ve felt my posting tailing off a little bit since I got back from the pause tour.

some.will.illuminate.shrouded.hope…

swishism entry announcement

Everytime I stumble across a new word that I like, I have the compulsion to investigate it’s meaning.  If I don’t find my mouse gravitating towards the Merriam-Webster bookmark, it’s cause I’m quick-drawing for my trusty dictionary. After 17 years together, it’s so worn there is no A section left.  I use it quite a lot. Appnraetly.

On the other hand, all the things that are met with hesitation on my to do list, are all the things I’m not very good at.  Take numbers for example, I always delay working with them.  Yesterday I  sat down with a friend, who, without hesitation - looked at some numbers I put in front of him, did a a quick investigation, and gave me a few workable solutions for how best to structure the financial particulars.

Everything has it’s season, but if your good at something, and it’s your passion, and you investigate it without hesitation, then for your own sake, find other people who are good in areas where you’re more hesitant.

swishism entry delegate, passion, procrastination

Nuff said.

swishism entry choice, discretion, double edged, shhhh

In basketball, hangtime is how long someone is in the air when shooting. According to FSN Sport Science, no-one can spend more than 1 second in the air. Just as well in a game like basketball where the shot clock waits for no man.

The other fact is this, I love hangtime, and I was dissapointed to discover it was an illusion.All that styling, the suspension of gravity, not really possible.

Sometimes we need to be the kind of person who is content with just interrupting the shotclock, and winning the game. Getting past the Karl Malone-like obstacles will do. Style will have to wait.

“Everday is a new 24, on your shotclock / you can get your shot blocked or score”

- Phanatik

swishism entry getting things done, style vs substance, win

Thought I’d preface today’s swishism with the invite I got to LEON Restaurant to taste test some of their (sublime) new recipes yesterday . We were pleasantly surprised to find their operations team and one of the founders we’re not just there, but actually listening to our feedback in person.

Award-winning restaurants soliciting feedback is nothing new, but down-to-earth founders engaging with their customers, trying to find out how they can make something more remarkable without the red-tape… that is rare in London, at least for me it was.

It got me thinking and then I saw this shot, entitled Rise Above (see left)

This flower is shot from the the bottom of a Brooklyn stoop. I imagine it’s one stoop away, one bended knee away from being plucked from relative obscurity to some well-appointed sun-drenched vase.

Once you notice the flower, it’s hard not to stoop down. Often for me though, the thinking goes ‘How can anything good come from… getting low?’ No surprise then that the times I lack humility most are the times I have least hope; no hope that there is anything worthwhile in the ‘low place’ for me, that my crouch will somehow be wasted. I like this picture because it affirms what a lie all that is.

There is hope,
flowering in obscure places
only catch is, I lack the power to
see it in vases.

I think we all lack that power to a degree, if we’re human.

On the upside however, it seems hope (and a slice of the humble) are just waiting to be taken up, whether from a 21st century restaurant in hip London locations, reaching out to Joe Bloggs with testers, or from a 1st century, Galilean fisherman like St Peter, who, once headstrong and proud, became  a conduit for truths like: “Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God, for in due time he will exalt you”. 1 Peter 5:6

swishism entry choice, humility, journey, opportunity, spiritual, waiting