Crown Shyness and Metanoia–Stuff I Just Learned About

If you know me, you know that shyness has never been one of my issues. I have always been gregarious to a fault (just ask the random strangers I would chat up as a young child in New York City elevators.) Public speaking was a joy from the get-go for me, and I’m still first at the mic, wherever one appears. If I had to identify with a natural occurrence, I would definitely pick something noisy and crowded together (hailstones, perhaps?) Never would I feel sympatico with the strange phenomenon of crown shyness.

Crown shyness, I just found out, is the term given to the strange way certain trees, clustered closely, still manage to avoid touching their uppermost branches together. While theories abound, no one is quite sure why this happens (the most likely explanation is that by creating breaks in the forest canopy, adequate sunshine is able to get through). When I think of crown shyness, I am reminded that we are all unique individuals, and, even in the tightest of surroundings, we all do best when we maintain a little personal space.

Now on to metanoia! Metanoia is a Greek word for “profound spiritual change.” To undergo metanoia is to have a great enlightening of mind and heart. I have always wanted to have this happen to me: the Saint-Paul-flung-from-his-horse moment, when I hear the Voice of God and all becomes new and different. Alas, any enlightenment in my life has been both slow and meandering. I experience something profound, and for a few days or weeks I feel re-born, before inevitably reverting to my old doubtful, fearful self once again. In other words, I am not the poster child for metanoia; that will not, however, stop me from throwing this cool word around.

I am all about stretching the brain with new info and ideas, yet at age 62 I am definitely bumping up against the limits of my gray matter. Evan and I were recently on the phone, and he mentioned enjoying reading “The Master and His Emissary.” Since my bedside table only has 30 or so tomes on it currently, I of course ordered the book on Amazon. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t 462 pages of tiny type, with a 128 page bibliography, that’s for sure! Too much for me! I had lunch with my friend Mike earlier today and we talked retirement bucket lists. Mike hopes to find a group with whom to discuss Kierkegaard when he has the leisure. I feel triumphant merely spelling Kierkegaard correctly, and imagine the conversation groups in my future will more likely revolve around hip replacements and grousing about the younger generation ( “OK Boomer” indeed! This proud Boomer will not be so casually dissed!)

Anyway, I am delighted to learn about crown shyness and metanoia, and hope that tomorrow will bring more new gems of knowledge. Meanwhile, I will sprinkle these terms liberally through my writing and smarten up my blog posts!