Erase the outline of your being

This is something I came across on Twitter. It pains me that I can't credit it, so once you or I find out the origin, I can rightly give praise, even in the comments section below. If I had the knowledge, skills, talent and what have you, I'd be working on a Shazam for general images. I know it kinda exists, or at least is not a novel idea, but mine would be special, obviously.

I gave this blip a deliberately obscure title. We're always encouraging students to read the story, not just the headline. The headline grabs the attention, and often it is very good at its job, while the fuller picture can be viewed once we've read the whole article. In our research-based classes the mantra is statement and justification - don't just tell it, explain it. So here goes, a short justification for the heading.

Erase is a word that just isn't used enough. Word association, I have 'Erase and rewind', the song by The Cardigans, and 'Eraserhead', quite possibly the worst film of all time (if we exclude anything Star Wars' and a thing with Jennifer Aniston and Clive Owen).

I love the line 'erasing the outline of your being', and when it follows 'feel the surface of your own skin' you know you're on a literary winner. 'Sit in a comfortable position' is a tricky enough start to start with for some, and it really should allude to 'couch' or 'lazy boy' (these recliners are called lazy boys, right? It looks wrong typed out).

I persisted with the whole process though. I often think 'stress' is for others to judge. I don't feel dressed per se - well not now, I'm on a bus home, and the most stressful thing is that I am upstairs and I have size 12 feet with pointy shoes. The stairs on the bus don't quite account for such blocks so I face the prospect of either going for it quickly or daintily. Either way, you may be experiencing shortly the first live Blipfoto tumble. The scenario is actually now stressing me. Her next to me is carefully avoiding the 'boundaries' rule about bus seatage and is poking her handbag into my thigh and is over-compensating when we turn left. We're not pals right now. I'm now double stressed.

I'm doing my best to 'sit in a comfortable position'. As much as the low roof of a double-decker bus can allow, I'm now 'feeling the weight of the air around me'. The bus is standing-room only, so as much as one can, and it's winter too, I'm on stage three. As I type I'm erasing. The guy behind me is talking about selling stolen car parts on eBay, but apart from that, there will very shortly he no boundary between me and the rest of the universe. I also wish there was no boundary between me and downstairs on the bus, but this meditation malarkey needs to go one step at a time. It's worth trying. Maybe not in top-deck of the bus home, but even then, erase away. It's nearly my stop. Wish me luck.