Cyrano, Rothko and Jung

Go to student matinee of Cyrano de Bergerac at the Alley theatre

Stacy considers Cyrano to be the greatest role for an actor

WHAT IS PANACHE? To be a great hero is not enough. Panache is not greatness but something added to greatness and stirring above it. It is something fluttering, excessive and a bit daring. If I was not afraid of being too pressed to work on a dictionary myself, I would propose this definition: Panache is the spirit of bravery. It is courage dominating the situation to the point of needing to find another word for it. To joke in the face of danger, that is the supreme politeness. A delicate refusal to take oneself tragically, Panache is then the modesty of heroism, like the smile with which one apologizes for being sublime. A little frivolous perhaps,a bit theatrical certainly, Panache is only a grace: but this grace that is so difficult to maintain in the face of death, this grace that assumes such force- this is the grace I wish for us.

From Edmond Rostand's Discourse Upon Acceptance Into the Acadamie Francaise

The Rothko Chapel

The Rothko Chapel is oriented toward the sacred and yet it imposes no traditional environment. It offers a place where a common orientation could be found- an orientation towards God, named or unnamed, an orientation towards the highest aspirations of Man and the most intimate calls of the conscience.- Dominique de Menil

The familiar identity of things has to be pulverized in order to destroy the finite associations with which our society increasingly enshrouds every aspect of our environment. - Mark Rothko

The Jung Center of Houston

Living the questions now.

Perhaps then, someday far in the future,

you will gradually, without even noticing it,

live your way into the answer.- Rainer Maria Rilke

The most important thing is to not stop questioning- Albert Einstein

Twenty questions worth asking.

1. What is my calling, at this stage in my life?

2. What can I learn from my dreams?

3. How can I tap my creative potential?

4. How can I improve my relationship with others?

5. What is the difference between job and vocation?

6. How can I be a better parent?

7. Where am I stuck in my development?

8. What is my persona, and when does it get in the way?

9. What parts of my reality have I left behind? What do I need to retrieve?

10. What is mature spirituality?

11. What does it mean to be an extravert or an introvert

12. How can I create a better relationship with my body?

13. What is the value of suffering?

14. Why do I create self-defeating patterns in my life?

15. Where am I blocked by fear?

16. How can I better serve my community?

17. Why do I have to hide so much of myself?

18. How can I recover a sense of purpose and dignity?

19. Why does the idea of the soul ("psyche") both trouble and intrigue me at the same time?

20. How is the life I am living too small for the soul?