from the publisher

The Bliss Issue

Most of what happens in the course of a day simply does not matter. We miss a deadline. Someone misunderstands what we say. We get cut off in traffic by a Hummer when we're in a hurry. We lose a phone number. We make a gauche remark because we're nervous. We're late, we're late, for a very important date. A bill collector calls. A check bounces. There's a poppy seed stuck in our teeth. We aren't invited to a party but our friend is. We get turned down...for a job, a relationship, a loan. There's no hot water. The dog digs another damned hole in the front yard. Someone pretends not to see us on the street. We have a flat tire. The printer runs out of ink in the middle of a job. We worry about our breath. We accidentally fart in yoga...or just walking through the office. One of our useless possessions breaks. Someone's big ego arm-wrestles our big ego to the ground. The last carton of yogurt is past its expiration date. Why do we give these things precedence over the color of the sky, the kindness of strangers, the interior world of a peony, the size of our soul? I drive back and forth to work over a soaring bridge with a panoramic view of harbor, sea, sailboats and skyline - and I forget to see it. Motion lights turn themselves on when I come home late at night - and I forget to marvel. The oven cleans itself - and I forget to be grateful. The morning glory vine comes back every summer - and I forget to celebrate. Fortunately, there's no deadline to miss on ordinary bliss. It never goes flat, there's no expiration date and the party it throws is always in progress. Best of all, there's no invitation required.

~nikki

publisher@skirtmag.com