Exercise The Soul
3/9;/2019 Saturday 2:46PM
I’m writing outside Preservation Coffee House
Slate grey cold wind out here, perfect for the soul.
Mathew Fox spoke of One-ing today and that the reason we are here is to “exercise the soul.” Well, he said something like that. We are not here to just wear our soul and turn it in at the end. So, I exercised the body this morning at Fit Republic gym, and then at In Shape Gym and then with personal trainer Jarod I worked arms and upper body.
And , I exercised the soul at the State Theater at 1 pm where I saw the movie “I’m Not Here”. I was crying by film’s end. In the film , a man’s future self rescues his past self. The 60 year old rescues the 30 year old self. The movie is soaked in alcohol. Alcohol plays an insidious character. Its signs and symbols liter the film and the landscape of the character’s lives. As does the darker side of gay and its attendant pal, suicide.”
End of entry
Note 2/10/2026
Preservation Coffee was a coffee house in Modesto that I wrote at for years . It recently went out of business. It was located in downtown Modesto, California. In my March 9, 2019 writing session above, I talked about Mathew Fox who is a spiritual writer, philosopher and speaker. I had been listening to one of his You Tube talks in which he discussed Oneness which probably meant Oneness of body and soul.
I used to like to hit more than one gym in a day and I have had many personal trainers since 2009, including Jarod who I trained with March 9.
And, I sought out movies that stretched and challenged my soul. “I’m Not Here” fit the bill. I watched it at the vintage 1935 Arts theater in Modesto, the State Theater.
In many ways,, my older self, now 70, like the character in the movie, heals and guides my younger selves via journal review. My journals cover the last 47 years. Alcohol and drugs can be like a destructive person in your life. Being gay can lead to suicide.. But, through soul stretching, physicalizing through body movement and through reflecting in a journal, these dark journeys can transform into resiliance and restoration.