About
Two Latin words, serio and ludere come together to provide a particular meaning. To play seriously or serious play is the kernel from which all the colors of our spectrum emerge. All the genes in our DNA trace back to the unity of these two words.
SL, Serio Ludere is inspired by and inspires a way of living, a posture of total presence and total abandonment, akin to the controlled folly of Don Juan*
Life is a mystery. It is brief like the blink of an eye. Whatever you buy and collect, you won't be taking with you. This helps to put us in place and remember the non-fatality of it all. At the end of the day, nothing is all too important. Now that we have dispelled the fear of making mistakes, and are in check with the idea that we can handle anything that comes our way, we may play. Playfulness is essentially an openness to anything that may happen. And perhaps it is from here precisely that the power comes, the power to play and play a beautiful game.
Throughout my training in Mathematics I encountered and collected two very beautiful notions.
First, that there is enough entropy in life to allow for anything to happen. Watch how smoke swirls and you will know that anything can come to you. Thus we are to challenge the imaginary limit known possibilities and unfold our own myth. Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.*
Second, the notion the of "The Book". In the world of mathematicians exists an imaginary Book. "The Book" contains
From this state of abandon and play, with ego out of the way and genuine approach, that we can tune into the response, may come the beautiful way to attend. Just the right argument in the tricky conversation, the striking joke, the witty comment, the right words, the perfect gift.
إن الله جميل يحب الجمال
God is beautiful and He loves beauty. He loves the loftiest of affairs and disapproves of pettiness.
Act great, my dear. Always Act great.
A grand life is a dance in small acts.
We listen, we read between the lines, the faint smile, the subtle gaze. We are inventive with what challenges us, creative with the cards we are dealt. We wink, we gift, we surprise. We love gestures. We curate and decorate and embellish the spaces we inhabit. We create meaning from the unraveling of our own lives, blow life into objects and guard tokens of our journeys. We embrace sophistication and passion. We honor, appreciate and encourage what is very well done.
How is living made an art? Through details, through the smallest gestures, the little notes left for a loved one on the edges of a book they are reading, the concoction of essential oils we experiment with at home, the smell of the laundry detergent we use. Life is made an art through being present, paying attention, being deliberate– Through having the disposition to embellish all the corners we can.
It’s about playing, Alas, most of us will not resolve the mystery of life and being alive but while we're here, we are to honor this marvelous experience and we serio ludere.
Henry Miller wrote, "Whoever uses the spirit that is in him creatively is an artist. To make living itself an art, that is the goal."
Yet, take note, underneath there is only one great art, that of making a complete human being of oneself. I think this is what Voltaire meant by Il faut cultiver son Jardin.
I hope for SL to bring you joy, inspire you and contribute to the beauty in your life.