Recently at a party held for capoeiristas, a Brazilian martial art form, I overheard one of our capoeira instructors giving advice to someone who was new to the practice. The instructor explained that each player must travel around the roda (circle) without stopping or else he/she will become an unmoving target. Since capoeira is played inside a circle of people, mostly other capoeiristas, who are singing, clapping and playing instruments, the two capoeiristas must outwit and out maneuver each other within that space. One of the newbie’s problems was that he kept getting pushed outwards toward the edge of the circle and crouching down like a trapped animal.
The instructor burst out with a brillant wise smile and told him, “A circle has no corners.” The immediate lesson of that advice is that when playing capoeira, you should never be trapped since you can always find a way out of the situation. I loved the mathematical correctness of the logic.
Just a few nights after the party, when faced with another bout of insomnia, that expression returned to my sleep-deprived mind. Within life, there are many circles. From the small circle of my morning routine to the big circle of human development, passing through stages from newborn to elderly. Even the irritating circles of my behavior where I wind up in the same deadend places after seemingly doing things differently.
Insomnia is one such place. Despite popular belief, I work out at least five times a week not merely to stay in shape, but to sleep well at night. I’ve never resorted to using sleeping pills, pretty much for the same reason I’ve never drank coffee to wake up. I figure if there’s something challenging my sleep/wake cycle (another circle!), then I need to change some aspect of my life.
A circle has no corners…what a beautiful analogy! My mind filled with life’s challenges that had me along the sides of the circle. I thought through what maneuvers I needed to do to return to the center. I’d be lying if I said that THE SOLUTION came to me in a flash, but I fell asleep and stayed asleep until my alarm went off.
Refreshed, I daydreamed about some different directions I could take my life, especially writing. A few hours after being at work, two writing opportunities came to me via email. One I dismissed after further investigation, but the other, I pounced on. Just like when playing capoeira: sometimes you feint, other times, you follow through.
As long as you keep moving or making progress, then you will never be trapped. The circle can enlarge or shrink. You can be inside the circle, part of it or an outsider. Just like a capoeirista can manuever her way toward the center of the roda, you also do not need to surrender to the marginalizing mechanisms in life. The “corners” only exist in your mind.
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