The Greatest Thing By Far...

The greatest thing by far, is to have a command of metaphor
Aristotle 330 B.C.

“Can you hear a distant drum

Bouncing on the laughter of a melody

And does the rhythm tell you ...come,come,come

Does your spirit do a dance to this symphony

Does it tell you that your heart is afire

Does it tell you that your pain is a liar

Does it wash away all your unlovely

And are you ready for a brand new discovery…”

Calypso Music, David Rudder

When David Rudder’s voice bounces on the laughter of a melody and his Calypso Music unmasks our pain as nothing more than an easily dismissed liar, his specific word choices deliver us all to highly personal, and yet universal awareness. There is that resonant “aha” of insight (read inner sight). All of a sudden we know something; we just ‘get it’. Rudder’s words, delivered on the rhythm of Calypso, are a distant drum resonating with and connecting to the “living vibration rooted deep within my Caribbean belly”. 

Rooted deep within my Caribbean belly...

If you have, in the ritual of the carnival masquerade, ever blessed your body with the sparkle of sequins and beads, feathers and frills; whether in the sliver of bikini triangles or under the easy yoke of traditional ole mas, you will know yourself to be a flesh and blood metaphor of “More”; embodying divine qualities: Joy, Freedom, Beauty, Power. 

Calypso’s metaphors pulse through every pore of the pilgrims in ecstasy. It is not all wanton flesh of a prodigal citizenry as perceived by moral pundits who do not speak, or reject her language. 

All of us, we cannot help but see, speak, think, write and live in metaphors every day. If we are open to witnessing the connections, the words  will serve primarily as vehicles to deliver us into meaning. And I am finding that everything in life has meaning.  

A metaphor is “living” when I hear it for the first time; or even if again and again, as though for the first time. I still love Tom Cochrane’s 1991 hit  “Life is a Highway” and Rascall Flatt’s cover of it in this century no less; but the powerful resonance of its metaphor has dwindled into little more than a cliché.  Perhaps it has succumbed to the expiry date of cultural irrelevance. Our highways are not quite the forever stretch on the islands, that they are on the continents.

Beyond gaming with words, metaphors are a way of understanding information and expressing “knowingness”. A way even, of transforming our lives: Christ spoke in metaphors; maybe in part, to protect his own life from those with ears that couldn’t hear.  Perhaps what we humans do with words, and name  “metaphors”, is built into an essential level of our expression; or maybe even existence.

One of my most colourful friends and sometimes-fisherman, divides people into two categories: Red fish, those who swim deeply in the sea of life and Carite, those who skim the surface.

The watery depth offered a calming contrast...

Snorkeling in Arnos Vale, Tobago this year, refreshed this metaphor for me. The watery depth offered a calming contrast against the stimulating activity of life on the surface.

Recently, when offered a choice between two fruit juices, a fresh 100% orange that was unsweetened, or a packaged 10% concoction, I heard myself say,  “I like it real, even if it’s sour… over something sweet and watered down any day.” The entire comment seemed to glow in the light of a metaphor crafted by unconscious intention; as if “oops” there goes a metaphor of Self transformation. It underscores my sincere preference for unconditional authenticity regarding just about everything in life.

All dis sugar can't be good for we...

Rudder’s more poetic metaphors in “Trini to de Bone”, declared something similar for our nation when he sang,

“Sweet sweet T and T,

All dis sugar can't be good for me…

Some people say, “God is a Trini”

Paradise and all convincing me …

But look a smart man gone wid we money

We still come out and mash up de party”

His calypso anthem hints at the consequences of saccharin side effects of using only the sweet taste of personal pleasure as the primary litmus test for our quality of life.

Something about a metaphor’s magic, has nothing to do then with its word-keys. There is a need for mutuality to bring it to life. The one who listens within, learns or “gets it” and can go on to craft and share the metaphor. In the first instance it is as though we are speaking to, with and for ourselves.

Metaphors are not the exclusive domain of ancient philosophers and genius Calypsonians. We earn transformational power by our sheer willingness to pay attention.  Personal insights sifted from the  metaphors we live and speak in everyday life, can and do instruct our self-awareness and growth. Culturally specific experiences are our customized lessons for embracing a deeper and more meaningful reality.

(Joanne is  also a children’s book author. Her 2010 releases  Pink Carnival! and The Donkey and the Race Horse are available online. http://meaningfulbooks.blogspot.com/)http://shecaribbean.com/