Flying At The Speed Of Joy

J: "You are very quiet. I don't think you've said ten sentences..."

JNET: "It's before noontime. I rarely speak to anyone before then."

I stepped out of my world and joined my roommate to celebrate his birthday at Magic Mountain. After several weeks of juggling my schedule, stressing over cars, fitting in family and friends and trying to keep up with rehearsals and exercise, Magic Mountain seemed like a good place to blow my mind.

But even the surreal sounds of listening to "It Had To Be You" while being roller-coastered at speeds beyond 80mph, 20 stories above the earth, with pyrotechnics dancing to a mix of heavy metal, didn't blow my mind.

Life is already blowing my mind.

J: "You are soooo quiet."

JNET: "It's noisy in my head."

Random conversations while standing in hour plus long lines....

Zipping along in roller coasters doesn't do much to scare me. Instead, I am filled with an awe for the engineering and creativity. To enjoy a moment to safely fly and be able to imagine how angels must feel, is to enjoy a "thrill" of a different sort that is separate from fear.

FLY AT THE SPEED OF FEAR was Tatsu's teaser. Such a fascination with fear and death... Doesn't anyone flirt with LIFE and see what's possible? But the conversation of roller coasters rides heavily on the flirtation with death... I find it hard to keep that perspective when I know I didn't sign release forms entering the park and I'm standing in line with a group of enthusiastic twelve year olds. Doesn't anyone else think that riding roller coasters can be an absolute JOY?

FLY AT THE SPEED OF JOY.... that is how I feel ...over this ride of life.

Who said joy is a high tech roller coaster? Why not a rickety noisy car? A splashy smooth water ride? Why not joy is a bumper car?

Flying at the speed of joy in what today?

Today is a good splash day.

JNET