Burning Man 2011

Burning Man 2011 Rites of Passage

 I have been thinking a lot about how to properly write about burning man and even now i dont know if i can properly convey the kind of experience it is. For me this was my 6th year straight, and by far the best one yet. So how do i put that into words, how do i explain something that is so visually striking, a place that at once is stark and beautiful, desolate and wondrous. To experience the true ingenuity of man, to marvel at what we can create when we are given an empty canvas to work with. Somewhere were anything from the smallest patch of luminescence mushrooms to a massive temple towering out of the desert seems to stand out in its own rite.Then sprinkled across this massive canvas are the denizens of it all, the creators, and participants, the lovers, and dreamers, the citizens of black rock city.
 Burning man for me every year has always been a crazy year long adventure. It is always there and the closer it gets, at times seems to grow that much farther. So many obstacles are always placed before me, that i must cross if i am ever to see that fair city again. This year was no different, and although what it took to get me here, was no less then any of the years before, and not nearly as dire as i believe another year has been, it seemed in the moment to be the hardest.
 So how do i properly convey the craziness that is burning man in a simple blog. I believe the experiences that we have at burning man, are both unique and personal. That can be shared with a single person, or with groups of Thousands...and that is the beauty. I found that his year above all else that people had such a variety of experiences. Some people were really upset about the fact that Burning man sold out. And someone in the SF Chronicle mentioned that this year seemed more packed then all the rest, and that camping next to a group of NY day traders, in their RV's killed it for him this year. That this year above all else was more commercial than all the previous years. I will say that at first i thought that. I secretly longed for a time when there were less people, where burning man was more of a whispered about event, for a select outgoing, and adventurous group of people. But i believe burning man is more than that. I believe it creates something, if even for only a week, unique not found in any other part of the world.
 Now did i not run into countless first timers this year, of course. There was even one young lady i ran into Djing on the Cock car, that had her keys in her hand. You could tell it was her first year, by the haphazard costume she was wearing. More just a random assortment of old clothes than an actual costume, but i knew, as that was my costume my first year. But i was shocked that she had her keys in her hand. I asked her, why do you have your keys on you, and in your hand. And she looked at me like i was crazy, and said so i don't loose them or get them stolen. That simple statement kind of rocked me, as i see burning man as a place where we can forget the issues of the real world, and really let go. Now i know that bikes get stolen, and random stuff goes missing,  but you know, we are to tied to those things anyways. You should be open and trusting to the world around you, once you start letting doubt and mistrust into your thoughts, then it will permeate you life. Then things whether you want them to happen or not, tend to. For me, my first year, i was worried about that. But then i found that everyone in my camp kept their keys in their ignitions, because who knows who might need to move your car. Or maybe you have something someone might need. I think we need to open ourselves up to being completely trusting of the people around us. to not fear that the person next to us is going to steal something we have. I think if you bring those kind of ideals into burning man, than you are negating the whole thing. Now if burning man turns you from one of those people, into someone who is more trusting, and more open, then in truth Burning man has done for you what it has done for me, open you up. To trust, to love, to be open to new experiences and adventures no matter how strange or unique.
This is why i feel that these people although a little out of place, half belong. I hope that these people, the ones that caravan there RV's to have there own private space, those that wonder around clutching there keys in their hands so they don't loose them, or get them stolen. Will see the beauty and reality of  burning man, will learn to let go a little of there own insecurities, and doubts about people. That maybe for a minute or two they will learn to trust, and depend on the person around them. That maybe by going to  burning man they will take those ideals that i find every year, and bring them back to their community. That maybe if even not at burning man, they will leave and realize how wonderful this place is. How magical it can be, if you are open to it. This is why i feel that guy from SF who says that burning man is to much for him now, forgot the things that really mattered. Making the world a better place, one person at a time. That maybe he should of stepped out of his shell, and gone and talked to those people from New York, maybe even gave them a hard time for doing what they did, and hope that next year they build a camp that is open to all of burning man. I can hope, we can hope for this.