burnt

What a goofy weekend. Last year, i went to Burning Man and left on Friday evening, emotionally destroyed and needing to get off the playa. I decided to finish out my week on the playa. On Wednesday, two of my dearest girlfriends came over and dreaded my hair. On Thursday, i dropped my car off at the shop and picked up a rental, determined not to playafy my car and deal with more breakdowns in Sparks. Ironically, they were out of compacts, economies, standards, intermediates, etc. so they gave me a luxury sedan that looked like a Jaguar. I felt like a pimp. On Friday, i went to the Exploratorium for a great meeting on education and then picked up a bunch of coax cable for friends on the playa and headed east.

I arrived on the playa, dropped off the coax and other supplies that people were craving and wandered into the night. I saw friends, i danced, i checked out cool art projects. More importantly, i saw the best temple i’ve ever seen. Last year’s temple was a joke to me – it felt anything but spiritual. But this year, oh this year. I danced through the night of the Burn, finding new muscles and loving every moment of it. I found peace from last year staring at the burn of the temple. And then there was clean-up. I spent all day Sunday and all morning Monday cleaning up the camp – pulling rebar, lifting boxes, tearing down the shade structure. I spent an hour searching for a member of our camp who failed to show up after the temple burn. And then the drive home. Gotta love when Denny’s is full of playa.

It’s hard to share what Burning Man meant to me this year, but it was very personal and i’m so glad that i went. Of course, i had forgotten that my flight to the east coast was on Tuesday so i was quite startled when Orbitz called to remind me. And now i’m off on the east coast with some friends in an interesting intellectual conversation.

3 thoughts on “burnt

  1. mie

    Me too, this year’s temple was the most moving for me. I cried when it burned…since it barely had time to fully display itself as they were still working on it on Friday. How fleeting, but that is the beauty…

  2. Patrick Gavin

    Yep, the temple burn this year was one of the best BM experiences I’ve ever had.

    I almost didn’t stay for it, but since I took the time to write something I figured I should watch it burn. I wasn’t disappointed. It was one the strongest affirmations of greater good that I have experienced.

    Then I got to spend the next 24 hours whacked out on Rockstar and modafinil for the drive back, singing happy songs in lamb pajamas- a small price to pay for revelation.

  3. sparkle

    Count me in for the temple burn cheers. I didn’t even go last year, but was totally blown away this year.

    The burn was special for me not just because of the temple and everything which surrounded it, but because I got to share it with someone I had just re-connected with. Watching my friend watch the burn really opened me up.

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