Don’t Litter the Stage with Bodies

This above all: to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
–William Shakespeare, Hamlet

These are Polonius’s last words to his son Laertes. Polonius is often described as a wise man; however, I would argue that while his words are wise, he is sometimes comic relief, misunderstanding and misinterpreting people and events in the play. By the end of the play, Polonius, Laertes, Hamlet and nearly everyone else is dead. He gave good advice, but no one seemed to be listening.

Which brings me to this: how can we be true to ourselves?

This seems a much better question than Hamlet’s more famous “To be, or not to be?” Hamlet’s question emerges from a deep depression rather than an engagement with life. In our fast-paced, consumer-driven culture, we find ourselves stressed, bombarded with stimuli, overcommitted, bone-tired, and maybe even depressed. Reading that sentence is exhausting.

Yet, there are urgent matters, which should occupy our thoughts:

• how to find ways to true to self and thus true to others;

• how to love ourselves and thus love others;

• how to find peace;

• how to know ourselves.

I’m at a place in life where it seems imperative to seek answers. Sounds selfish, doesn’t it? But is it? If we are true to ourselves, then, according to Polonius, we will not be false to others. This seems similar to the paradox that to love others we must first love ourselves.

I don’t have answers. I’m a seeker.

However, I do have a wise daughter, who is studying Chinese medicine. She has me drinking a lovely herbal tea, which I brew from fresh herbs each day. She told me, “Take your tea outside. Sit on the patio and drink it in quietude, enjoying your surroundings. Feel the sunshine, the breeze.” At first, this was a chore for me because I had to stop and my mind flitted from one thing to another, but after a few days, my mind quieted down, and I began to look forward to tea time.

Looking inside and discovering who we are in this crazy, fast-paced world might seem impossible, but I’m hopeful; I’m aiming for the possible. I’m not the clothes I wear, my hair, my body, my face, the car I drive, or the house I live in. I’m something far more than all that. So are you. I’m looking for the me I seem to have lost in the busyness of living. I’m trying to be quiet and figure out who Cora Foerstner is.

I practice yoga most mornings and have learned to love the little ceremony at the end of practice. I put my hands together; I bow slightly—a nod of my head, almost as if in prayer—and I whisper “Namaste.” This little ritual after a very peaceful, relaxing experience makes me happy. Namaste is a salutation and recognition of the divinity within me and the divinity within the other person. I am saying something like, “The divinity in me salutes the divinity in you.” What would the world be like if we practiced looking within and seeing the divine in us and looking out and seeing the divine in others?

I’m wondering what you do to be true to yourself, to find peace and self-love?

My tea is ready. I’m heading for the patio, . . .