The Compass of Desire

I gaze into the misty darkness, compass in hand.

Once the brass has warmed in my palm, I glance down. 

The needle is dancing its familiar jig.

Every time I lie to myself, it jerks and spins.

Every time I tell the truth, it purrs and settles.

I stole this compass from Captain Jack Sparrow after he told me it doesn’t point north, but instead quivers towards whatever desire of yours burns hottest, like swigging an entire bottle of rum in one breath. His words, not mine.

As you might expect, he was more rum than pirate when he let that secret slip. I prefer powders and smoke to booze, but I’m grateful for Jack’s foibles on this occasion. He’d never have let that nugget slip free if he were sober.

Anyway, this compass points towards your desires that aren’t polite or timid.

Instead, the ones that claw, hum, and burn.

The ones that if you ignore them for too long, will rot you from the inside out. I learned that one the hard way. But I think I’ve got the hang of this thing now.

You see, this compass doesn’t give directions. 

Instead, your desire becomes your orientation.

Now that’s a treasure worth mugging the greatest pirate who ever lived for.

~~~

Desire is the pulse of what’s real for you… the illogical-yet-undeniable pull to butterflies, street art, music, cacao, cats, or however else the universe delights you.

Where do these urges come from? Should I listen to them? All of them? Am I mad?

Doesn’t matter. Yes. No. Probably not.

Desire can rise from your body, like hunger or touch; flow from your heart, like love, connection, or belonging; or surge from your spirit, like purpose, creation, and expression.

Desire can rise from your body… flow from your heart… and surge from your spirit.

The trick lies in not following blindly, but listening for the message underneath.

Sometimes listening means following a different path than you initially thought.

And sometimes listening means setting aside a desire entirely, once and for all.

Desire reveals which parts of you want to grow, heal, or come alive.

The absence of desire can be equally revealing too.

~~~

The needle settles, sighing softly into stillness.

I grin at the heading.

Perfect.

With love from the forest,

~ Alexander