Category Archives: Blog

All good writing is swimming under water and holding your breath. – F. Scott Fitzgerald

This cedar tree fish is today’s Fish of the Day.

So I’ve been on this kick of doing capoeira in the sea, and this morning I read that my underwater somersaults may be part of a larger trend–as detailed in this article on the Aqualillies–a synchronized swimming troupe.

Needing a quick break from writing today, I decided to take a swim in the sea with my friends–the fish. Stroking along my usual route, I noticed that the television on the floor of the sea had mysteriously disappeared. I never found out how it got there in the first place, and now I’m not sure how it vanished.

While I was appreciating how quiet it is under the water–far from the commotion of every day life–I noticed a Lebanese man–about forty-years-old–treading water, about thirty feet in front of me. I grew concerned that he couldn’t swim–he seemed nervous, like a fish out of water–in water. As I was following some fish through their homes, I watched him–out of the corner of my goggles–dive so far under the water that I thought he might drown. I’ve never seen anyone go down that deep, and I knew there was no way I could save him if something went wrong–he was just too big. As I marveled at him touching down on the floor of the sea, he grabbed the waistband of his bathing suit and dropped his drawers. Just like that–he slipped off his suit to flash his derriere. Real classy. So I guess it’s hard to leave the world behind–even under the surface of the water–when the sea is still full of sharks…

Emily O'Dell in Kenya

Life is busy here in Beirut–with Eid and many deadlines–but I did manage to sneak in reading this travel review of the Maji Moto Maasai Cultural Camp in Kenya–where tourists learn about the ways of the Maasai, and live in a “traditional” Maasai village. I’m still deciding how I feel about this, but it brought up fond memories of my trip exactly one year ago–when I led a safari through Kenya, and was treated to a remarkable healing session by a Maasai medicine man…who says he’s continuing to heal me from afar…

Photo by Emily O'Dell

The Sufi poet is a fish thrown up on the beach, leaping and squirming to regain the ocean. He sees God everywhere and in everything, but he cannot find the gate of union. —  Meher Baba

This diamond encrusted fish is today’s Fish of the Day.

Today, when I went swimming in the sea, the joke was on me. I was doing my normal route, just like every day–admiring the fish, polishing my strokes–and just as I was sailing away into my thoughts–I spotted it. Sitting on the floor of the sea–was a television–a giant one–a boob tube for the fish.

The fish swam in front of it, around it. Who had put it there? Who had taken the time to dump it overboard? I was used to swimming by the usual pollution–Pepsi cans, beer cans–but a television? And that’s when I got an idea–why not make an environmentally friendly art installation–under the sea?

Of course, underwater sculpture’s been done before. In fact, artist Jason de Caires Taylor has an underwater television piece, titled “El Coleccionista de los Sueños Perdidos”–which is one piece among 400 that he’s submerging near Cancun, Mexico to create the world’s largest underwater art museum.

Photo by Jason Decaires Taylor

The experience of being underwater is vastly different from that of being on land. There are physical and optical considerations that must be taken into account. Objects appear twenty five percent larger underwater, and as a consequence they also appear closer. Colours alter as light is absorbed and reflected at different rates, with the depth of the water affecting this further. The light source in water is from the surface, this produces kaleidoscopic effects governed by water movement, currents and turbulence. Water is a malleable medium in which to travel enabling the viewer to become active in their engagement with the work. The large number of angles and perspectives from which the sculptures can be viewed increase dramatically the unique experience of encountering the works. — Jason Decaires Taylor

Photo by Jason Decaires Taylor

To see more photographs of his underwater sculptures, please click here. As for me, I’m still dreaming up an installation of my own for Lebanon–under the sea…

Wheeeeeeee...gotta love Pergamon in Turkey!

Come travel the globe with me upside-down, in my new Huffington Post piece “Cartwheeling Around the World”.

Here’s the link to my new piece “UNO in Beirut: Playing Kids with Cancer”–which is about my volunteer work this past year at the Children’s Cancer Center of Lebanon/St. Jude’s in Beirut. Just this past week-end, my young friends there creamed me in both UNO *and* fussball–they sure can play, despite the difficulties they are going through…

Emily O'Dell in Beirut

Long live my Master
Who taught me capoeira–
It is water for drinking
It is iron for striking
It is from the sacred drums…

–Capoeira Song

So, I love capoeira–and I love the sea. Put them together–and what do you get? Underwater capoeira! Yesterday, while stroking in the sea, I felt bored with my usual routine. I usually start off with some laps (a medley of freestyle, breast stroke, butterfly), tread some water, add in strengthening exercises, and then float in corpse pose to be lightly bronzed by the setting sun (the best part, of course). It’s a fun and varied program, but yesterday I was hungering for something different.

In Colombia for a capoeira tournament

The sea: my life, my love, my medicine, my friend…

Capoeira: my dance, my fight, my (he)art, my soul…

Of course, capoeira has been played on the beach since its birth in Brazil–but to actually practice kicks and strikes in the water, I realized, would be different than playing on the beach–which is always a kick.

The best time I’ve ever had playing beach capoeira, was when I traveled to Colombia for a capoeira baptism & tournament in Santa Marta–which sits on the Caribbean Sea and at the foot of the highest peaks in the country (boy was it hot!). If you haven’t been to Colombia–definitely add it to the list (especially before more tourists start “discovering” it).

While playing in the water yesterday, I re-lived my time in Colombia, while throwing different capoeira kicks, like Meia-lua de Frente (Front Half Moon Kick), Ponteira, Benção and Queixada. Today, I’ll continue this experiment in about an hour or so and see what other moves work underwater. Give it a try sometime–it’s incredibly freeing to dance and fight in the water–not to mention, it’s way better for the joints–than trying to kick and flip on land.

When I got home from the beach, I wanted to see if this was like a “thing”–underwater capoeira. What I found was this awesome video online–of capoeira teacher Rafeal, who coaches Bantus Malaysia capoeira, doing capoeira underwater in Malaysia. This sports drink commercial provides great ideas for moves to try underwater in the pool. Enjoy!

Playing capoeira in Santa Marta, Colombia

THE THREE FISH

This is a story of the lake and the three big fish that were in it: one of them intelligent, another half-intelligent, and the third, stupid.
Some fisherman came to the edge of the lake with their nets.

The three fish saw them.

The intelligent fish decided at once to leave, to make the long, difficult trip to the ocean.
He thought, “I won’t consult with these two on this.
They will only weaken my resolve, because they love this place so.
They call it home.
Their ignorance will keep them here.”

The wise fish saw the men and their nets and said, “I”m leaving.”

The half-intelligent fish thought, “My guide has gone.
I ought to have gone with him, but I didn’t,
and now I’ve lost my chance to escape. I wish I’d gone with him.

He mourns the absence of his guide for a while, and then thinks:
“What can I do to save myself from these men and their nets?
Perhaps if I pretend to be already dead!
I’ll belly up on the surface and float like weeds float,
just giving myself totally to the water.
To die before I die.”
So he did that.
He bobbed up and down, helpless–within arm’s reach of the fishermen.

“Look at this! The best and biggest fish is dead.”

One of the men lifted him by the tail,
spat on him,
and threw him up on the ground.
He rolled over and over
and slid secretly near the water,
and then–
back in.

Meanwhile, the third fish, the dumb one,
was agitatedly jumping about,
trying to escape with his agility and cleverness.

The net, of course, finally closed around him,
and as he lay in the terrible frying-pan bed, he thought:

“If I get out of this,
I’ll never live again in the limits of the lake.
Next time, the ocean!
I’ll make the infinite my home.”

–Rumi

Emily O'Dell taking a capoeira break while excavating at Giza

For thousands of years, survival was linked to our ability to kill and destroy. Today and in the future, survival will depend on our capacity to live in peace with other men and with nature. Modern man needs to reprogram his mind. He needs to channel in another direction the energy used in war and in the killing of other men and animals. We think capoeira can make a contribution to this process. — Nestor Capoeira

Capoeira is joy, it is good humor, it is not that competition business; it is spontaneity. –Mestre Suassuna

Emily O'Dell

(Photo:

The best time is now,
the most beautiful space is inside your heart,
the greatest virtue is the truth.

– Mestre Marcelo Caveirinha

To my surprise, I started my week off just right, with some morning capoeira. Capoeira music was playing in the background while I was waking up–and before I knew it, I was up and practicing my moves, singing along, and greeting this morning with a dance and a smile. How can that music not help but bring a smile?

Even if you’ve never tried practicing the moves of this amazing Afro-Brazilian art, just putting on some capoeira music in the morning (on youtube) can help get you out the door, and make you feel like you’re dancing all day.

(Photo: Emily O'Dell)

Capoeira is a game, it is dance, it is fight, it is of war and it is of peace, it is of culture, of music, it is a portion of things.
– Mestre Suassuna

The picture at the top was taken in the White Valley of Cappadocia in Turkey–when I felt like adding some vertical dimension to that dazzling stone surface. What’s beautiful is that capoeira these days is everywhere–I’ve played and trained in Russia (left), Colombia (pictured above), and Greece–and even had the opportunity to teach it in Egypt. So if you want to learn capoeira, there’s probably a place and teacher nearby to teach you. In the meantime, if you need an instant pick-me-up–turn on some capoeira music online–and start activating your inner fighter, dancer, artist–and trickster.

A venerable capoeirista once said to me: “I wished to be a dancer and I could not be. Today I dance in capoeira. I wanted to be a fighter, so I now fight in capoeira. Because I want to be an artist and express myself, have self-esteem, and be a real human being, I am a capoeirista.” For us capoeiristas, the play of capoeira transcends each occasion of its actual performance and translates to every moment in life. Capoeira is not a costume to be worn and taken off according to the situation or tournament. It is our own skin. We carry it all the time. We are cats, rats and monkeys, ferocious and gentle beasts in cavalcade through the many rodas of life. We are clowns, masters and slaves of the art who regain the freedom of ourselves only when cooked in the cauldron of Medea–which is the play in the capoeira circle.

— Mestre Accordeon

Here’s the fish of the day–along with a poem by Hafiz…

Looking for Good Fish

Why complain about life
If you are looking for good fish
And have followed some idiot
Into the middle of the copper market ?

Why go crazy
If you are looking for fine silk
And you keep rubbing your hands against
Burlap and hemp sacks ?

If your heart really needs to touch a face
That is filled with abundance
Then why didn’t you come to this
Old Man sooner?

For my cheek is the universe’s cloister
And if you can make your prayers sweet enough
Tonight

Then Hafiz will lean over and offer you
All the warmth in my body
In case God is busy
Doing something else
Somewhere.

Why complain if you are looking
To quench your spirit’s longing
And have followed a rat into the desert.

If your soul really needs to touch a face
That is always filled with compassion
And tenderness
Then why,

Why my dear
Did you not come to your friend Hafiz
Sooner?

This time last year, I was leading a safari for Columbia through Kenya and Tanzania–and having the time of my life. If you ever have the opportunity to do a safari–do it. Going on safari is the experience of a lifetime, and it completely revolutionizes and deepens one’s appreciation for the natural world. Our safari was very lucky–we spotted the big five almost immediately, along with a number of very rare sightings. For reasons I’ll never understand, I’ve got the right eyes to spy on wildlife–and can even spot sly lions slumbering in the trees (yes, they really do that).

I’ve been reminiscing this week-end about my last safari, because I recently viewed a stunning National Geographic feature on Serengeti lions online–which uses video and photography to bring the wonder, beauty, and horror of a safari right to your screen–wherever you are. Do czech it out–and allow yourself plenty of time to explore each of the many sections.

Photo by Emily O'Dell

Antonius "Oki" Wiriadjaja

July was a bloody month. That’s my friend Oki, who was shot in cold blood in New York in a drive-by shooting in broad daylight. About a week later, my other friend was brutally murdered at her home in Hawaii. July was a month of unfathomable violence–and I’m glad it’s over.

It’s August now, and these painful wounds are still fresh, but starting to heal. This week-end, there will be a memorial service—a celebration of life–for my friend in Hawaii, whose legacy of love is continuing to inspire. Now, in the driveway where her body was discovered, the word “LOVE” is spray-painted in giant red letters across the wall.

And, as you can read on his blog, Oki is working hard on healing his wounds–both mental and physical–and sharing his journey with all of us. Though the bullets took a few of his organs, they left his sense of humor intact–and he’s turning his trauma into an opportunity to advocate both for the community where he was shot and for gun control.

In his own words: The greatest pain killer in the world doesn’t come from syringes or pills. It’s keeping your sense of humor when the world surrounding you is breaking apart. A spoonful of sugar. To keep the bitter away. Don’t get bitter. Get better.

To help Oki in his recovery, please consider making an online donation to his recovery fundraiser–any small amount will make a very big difference.

It’s always been deeply humbling and inspiring to know these two warriors of love and compassion–but now it’s even more so, since everyone directly impacted by these tragedies and traumas is choosing to resist hatred and anger–and instead embrace forgiveness and make a difference.

When Bob Marley was asked how he could perform two days after being shot, he said, “The people who were trying to make this world worse are not taking the day off. Why should I? Light up the darkness.” Yes, my friends, light it up.

Today’s Fish of the Day requires a bit of work on your part.

This is the only fish I saw in the souq exhibit that’s interactive.

This clever take on the artistic “assignment” inspired me to imagine how I would design a fish if I took part in this public art display for charity. I’m still thinking about it…

How about you? If you contributed a fish to this exhibit, how would you design it? Would it be interactive too? How? Would it have a hidden message? Hmmmm…

So, from your computer–wherever you are–can you solve this fish in Beirut and find the 9 words hidden on its side?

Good luck!

Cool–just a few days after I debuted my “Fish of the Day” series, this article–“Beirut Fish Raise Money for Sick Children”–was published to introduce some of the artists behind these fish and the intention behind the exhibit.

Each fiberglass fish I’ve been posting has been made to resemble a Lebanese dorade–otherwise known as my daily swimming buddies in the sea. Fifty artists took part in making each one of these fish unique–with colorful flowers, graffiti, jewels, and calligraphy. At the end of the exhibition, the fish will be auctioned off to raise funds for sick children–through organizations like Toufoula, which creates “Dream Rooms” using art, music and lighting to provide relaxing and comforting rooms for sick children.

And my favorite message written on one of the fish: “Swim So You Can Stay Alive.”