Train of events

The only means of strengthening one's intellect is to make up one's mind about nothing, to let the mind be a thoroughfare for all thoughts. John Keats -brainyquote

I'm writing this blog while on the VIA train from Ottawa to Montreal.
Not nearly as romantic as traveling on the mythical Tran-Siberian railway stretching over 9,000 kilometers. Or a ten-hour train from Kochi to Goa along the western coast of Southern India. Still, railways and even the train I'm on has always inspired romantic musings.

When I'm being a romantic, I lean more towards instinct. I listen more to my inner voice and longings. I desire connection. I feel a greater openness to the unknown.  I crave freedom to live according to my own version of, “I got to be me.” I want to party, dance and listen to loud music.

The romantic in me resists strict rules, traditions, recipes, conventions and good manners that aren’t sincere.  I am slayed by beauty, nature, words, challenging conversations, humor and boldness (and not by flowers, chocolates and candle-lit dinners).  This is in contrast to my no-nonsense, down-to earth, sensible, practical and considerate self.

The train moves out of the station.  I ready myself to be transported for two hours to a private state of free-floating romanticism. Ready to be moved by the snowy landscape out the window, reflect on my disappointments, toss out the  "shoulds", order and control and pine away - long, yearn and want.

I sit alone on the train waiting for "it" to happen. I wait patiently.  Not even a watered down romantic thought reveals itself. What has happened I wonder? The romantic spirit does not visit me. I remember it's Saturday and the romantic spirit might be enjoying a day off, skating on the canal in Ottawa.

I comfort myself with this thought: My life is good, complete and satisfying. My romantic sensibilities have slowly been absorbed and integrated into who I am. Perhaps my romantic leanings will re-surface when I really need them.
Or,

• When I'm coaching someone who is rooted in the Age of Enlightenment and desperately needs a counterbalance {The Enlightenment was a movement pre-Romanticism emphasizing reason and the scientific method)
  
• When my life feels too small
• When a dark mood comes over me 
• When I meet an interesting stranger at a bus stop

My romantic spirit is no longer roaming, but is comfortable at home. What about you?

Spiritedly yours,

Coach Minda

J. M. W. Turner, Yacht Approaching Coast (1840)

Romanticism was a movement in the arts and literature which originated in the late 18th century, emphasizing inspiration, subjectivity, and the primacy of the individual * {online oxford dictionary}

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