brothers are good

Being a twin is one of my most favorite things. When I get together with my bro, we always explode. There is twice the energy, twice the thought, twice the excitement. Having an Aries twin brother is the greatest! We can go anywhere, do anything.. there is an absolute limitless amount of energy that flows around us and between us. Ride waves, chase dolphins, climb mountains, the world is open for play.
A twin is your missing half, the part of you that is only unlocked when you are together. I love my brother!


(Andrew Tipton)

The Day Before Motion

There is always a rumble in my stomach a few days before I do something crazy. I can feel that rumble now - a day away from absolute nomadic adventure. I love this feeling.
It is the feeling of ambition, of uncertainty, of anticipation, of hunger, of thirst, of delight, of necessity - it is the feeling of being consumed by motion. There is an addiction. I think it is an addiction because I am constantly thinking about it, lusting after it... it compels me.
I can already taste the sweat of travel. I can already hear the sounds of waterfalls and the sounds of trees and the sounds of sleeping under the stars - every movement has a sound.
Right before I leave, it feels like the top of a very high slide, and as I near the edge I feel nothing but the flow, and then the world falls out from under me and all I can do is try and breathe. why? I have doubted myself as to why I need to go. What reason? How unsafe. The lack of comfort, the cost. Then I see myself in a mirror, I hear the tick of a clock, and I remember how quick this all ends. My bags are packed.

We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand - and melting like a snowflake. Marie B. Ray


(Andrew Tipton)

The Wait Is Over

I like to think about ideas - to toss them back and forth in my creative little mind, until I think I own them. I like to talk about notions, about the way of life, the days, the movement - just for the sake of hearing what I know, from myself. As I am writing and thinking, and talking now.
There is a moment though, when I have to do what it is I say I want to do. There is a moment when everything that I believe and everything that I say I stand for is held up to the burning light - either I decide to back up what I have said, or I fall with my empty words; words without power, and with no substance.
Procrastination. A luxurious consolation - and the empowering excuse to never stand up and live for what you believe. Idly we sit and watch youth and motion drift away.. second after fleeting second... and our justification? Tomorrow.
There are those who use "TIME" as their shield. When we say, "I'm not ready yet." or "Just a few more years of ______ .", we are running our lives on empty words. WHEN!?? when are you ready? WHEN is it time? The illusion of an existence past NOW keeps us bound to priorities that are pointless, useless.. deadly to motion, and adventure. We feel safety, when all we do is talk about being radical. We are comfortably contained and defined, when all we do is think about living outside the box. There is no challenge, no fear, and no feeling in a life that is not conciously aware of the NOW. A life that rides on delicate words is not a life I want to own.


You will never be any younger than you are right now.
Life is totaly undeserved - and that makes it incredibly priceless.
the wait is over
we were born to live.


Andrew Tipton

TO THE FLAME

Candles were lit, moonlight streaming through the tree tops.
I was watching them flicker, watching the glow, the flames swaying. As I sipped my noir, there was the flutter of tiny wings through the night.
A moth.
There was no slow approach, no hesitation, no anxiety or dissuasion - the moth simply flew up to the flame, and then right into it.
Burned and lifeless, its body fell from the flickering glow, and landed on the ground. For a moment I envied that moth.

To have the absolute resolution - to know what it is you want, what it is you must be close to... and then go into it!
The moth only knew one thing, what he was drawn to. The silent wave of the candle's flame, was all the seduction this tiny creature needed - and it pursued that light until the end.
We are easily swayed. Changing our minds, following half-heartedly, not even attempting to pursue that which drives us from the depths of our souls. How good to live like the moth. How incredible a life that is entirely sold out to the relentless pursuit of the light. I would almost follow that moth - because it found something worth living and dying for - not just an idea, but something real that it wasn't afraid to touch, or be consumed by. We crave that. I crave that. That ability to live solid - and die solid too.
Here's to the pursuit of the flame.


Andrew Tipton

the rain came

There was silence for a moment,

moonlight bathing me in soft atonement,

the sins of my day only shadows,

hidden by the blackness of the night.



I listen to the waves roar,

I listen to the ocean,

It sings songs about the truth that I adore,

songs about the love of motion.



Clouds twist in graceful fury,

above my head as I bury

my fingers further down into the sand,

deeply down into the sand.



There is a cool breeze blowing across my face,

I tilt my head back and my tounge tastes

the saltwater and wine that stain my cracked lips.



"Beauty..", I smile and say, "..is hidden in the perfect places."

and then the rain came.





Slow at first, I could count the drops

Then thick and strong, and the calmness stopped.

The rush of a thousand heavy wings.

The chorus, before an angel sings.



Lightning chased every star away,

The thunder made the palm leaves sway,

and in the sand is where I lay,

watching clouds collide.



What action does a mere man take?

pinned against the beach, in heaven's wake.

Only here do I find the true weakness of my strength.

The mercy bound to each moment,

The second hand,

how undeserving of it.

In the face of glory there is no time,

only motion

only life

only the devine.



the rain came - I found peace between the drops.


Andrew Tipton

Shine it all Around

What would the world be like if we started sharing. What would happen if we began giving away ourself in ordinary places? If truth and absolute openness were our allies instead of our constant struggle. We would open our mouths and words would form on our tounges.. but they would be words that change lives, words that change minds, they would be the words that we really, truely, are dying to say.
There is a fear that lives inside of us. It lives 10 seconds in the future, and it likes to tell us that what we think and what we need to say, can wait. We meet these points in life where moments are forver shifted - our future changes because of whether or not we choose to speak and what we choose to speak about - often we surrender the moment to silence. what good came of silence? What good of safety and being quietly a bystander to the world's arguements?
I listen to coversations with great anticipation. Most of the time I am disapointed. We speak safely. An entire days worth of words are wasted on mindless sound! When did we lose the courage to say what we feel? When did it become unpopular to stir things up? To stir people up.
But there are those moments where courage shines through! Where someone, despite their fear, says something brave - and the words almost pierce your mind! I love those moments. beautiful sound. The pure passion of a voice, the resounding throb of excitment that lingers in your ears! We don't talk that way enough. How are you going to talk about buying groceries with passion? How do you whine about your pains and aches with passion? How do you gossip with passion? WE DON'T!! Passion comes from our heart, and words from the heart are spoken in sencerity, and sencerity is tied to thoughts that have genuine substance, that actually hurt and cut and heal! A radical life, a life outside, dangerous and free - a life like that breathes radical words.

I'm ready for real words. We're ready for real communication, real truth between humans. Speak to me.. and I will listen

(Andrew Tipton)

MOA

Men of Adventure

There is only so much I can take. There is a swell inside, a wave that has been growing since I was born - it started small, it was controlled, there was an ache but no wound. I felt the burn to escape, to let go. The wave has grown. I am now riding a tsunami.
Swept away by the greatness and the thirll, the call is pressing.. so pressing. I am caught in the wake of freedom. There is an urge inside me, a genuine unstoppable urge for freedom! To touch the world, no in a ambiguous pretty way, but solidly, strongly.. to reach my hands out and grab it, twist it under my fingers - the oceans, the mountains, the trees, the people, the thoughts, the rivers, the songs, the nights, the mornings, the heat, the cold, the truth of existence.

We are men of adventure. There is motion in us, around us, all around us.. and I can't stand just reading about it, or thinking about it!! I want to be in it, surrounded by it, I want to feel it pumping through my veins and in my eyes. Do you think you will be young forever? I cannot let myself be owned anymore - this all will pass away.. and what did I do? Did I own a beautiful house? Did I drive an amazing car? Did I build a career? did I sell my soul for $50,000 a year.. $100,000.. $1,000,000... no price tag is worth your life! Only once. That is how many times you have to live today - only once .
So much keeps us tied to the safety. But safety has choked me until I can't breathe anymore, comfortable has stolen my growl. ARE YOU NOT TIRED OF LOVING IT ALL TOO MUCH??? ARE YOU NOT ABSOLUTELY INSANELY COMPELLED TO MOVE???
I am ready. God, I am ready. I am nothing, I don't deserve a thing. And yet there is the entire world given to me to enjoy. Wow. Adventure is calling is calling. Join me.



(Andrew Tipton)

Thoughts From The Cataraft

There is something incredible about being around water. Each association with it has a remarkably unique feeling.
When I'm underwater, looking out, I feel peace and an objective outlook on the world - I am in a place that I was not meant to exist for very long. Underwater, there is a calm intensity, an urge to be a part of this incredible, dark place, but to escape it at the same time.
In water, when I'm surfing, I feel very different, I feel like I am part of the waves, part of the rythm that is continually beating the shore. There is peace there too, peace with the sensation of fellowship. In the ocean, I feel like I am part of a family, like we were made to move together, to think the same - there is a need to find a wave, join it, and become part of its motion.
When I am on the water I am in absolute wonder. Caught between the motion of twisting and splasing - there is a surface, depth, and direction. When I am on the water, I feel like I am being held in the very hands of motion; like a child gripped on the shoulders by his powerful father. I go where the water wants me to go. Looking at the converging flows, I notice that there are fast rushing sections, dangerous wakes, calm pools - it is all water, but never the same movement. In my canoe I am not helpless, but I am being led, and I have the choice to follow or resist. There are the same struggles and the same beauty of life found on this liquid surface - the very essence of living. From the moment you enter the water, you are moving... you never stop moving.
I ADORE MOTION

(Andrew Tipton

The Look in Our Eyes

We crave adventure. Every last one of us. We want to taste it, want to be apart of it, we want to experience danger and live to smile about it another day.

I have a confession.. I have been watching people. I have been watching their eyes; people have hunrgy eyes. There is a desire inside, I can see it - a flame deep down thats causing our very hearts to ache.
Most people can't pin the feeling down, they think its a need that will be filled by aquiring more "stuff" more luxury, more money, more whatever - it is not. As you sit at your comfortable desk, being cooled by your convenient air conditioner, fretting about your imaginary problems.. you start to feel it. Maybe you break out in a sweat, maybe you drink some water, have a smoke, or maybe you eat one of those convenient 100 calorie cookie packs to get your mind of your restlessness - but it is still there. That urge to claw your way out of this glass cage, let your hair down, take your shirt off, and scream out of pure excitment - I AM ALIVE!!!

We want to live free. We need to. We were designed with motion in mind. We were made amazing - created to climb, run, swim, jump, dash, kick, fall, twist, push, spin, and use energy. FOR A VERY SHORT TIME ONLY.

People have tried to stop being a part of motion. We think that being comfortable = happiness; it does not. Adventure is the enemy of comfortable, they cannot co-exist. And yet, we try to make them fit, make it work. We're willing to try to be adventurous, but only as long as we can have the necessary qualities, which we deserve and require. HOW MUCH FREEDOM, HOW MUCH EXCITMENT IS LOST FOR THE SAKE OF COMFORTABLE?? Too much!
Can you imagine giving up comfortable for a moment.. say goodbye to predictible, well-organized, rules, and enter a world that is absolutely, stunningly exciting.
I was in an argument the other day about living a radical life. There is this idea that radical living is capable in ordinary senerios - it is not. Radical, is not subjective to you or me! A person doesn't become radical just because they THINK that they are that way. It is REAL, TRUE, DEFINED - it is an adventurous, dangerous lifestyle that can only be experienced though living out what is NOT comfortable - a life that is torn from subtle tranquility, and thrown into the mystery, the revelation, the depth and the substance of adventure.
WE ARE MADE FOR THE ADVENTURE OF LIFE It is etched in every last one of us. Let go of comfort, get up from your desk, get off of your sofa, and do something incredible! Adventure is right here in front of us all.. waiting, waiting, waiting. take it by the hand.. and LIVE FREE!!

(Andrew Tipton)

Thank you

When I know I deserve NOTHING I become excited about everything!
LIFE IS WONDERFUL. WONDER + FULL.
LIVE FREE

this moment of youth

I am always in a struggle.
I am constantly forgetting that life doesn't make circles.
I am consumed by the fact that we are beautiful, strong, and radient only for a fleeting instant. An instant, a blink, a moment of youth
There are those of use who either don't care, or don't know how incredible life is between the ages of 10 and 20 something. We are so captivated by the simplicity of conformity, that we're willing to sacrifice our bodies, our dreams, and our abilities to the gods of work and success. Life is too fast for such pursuits! It is over before it begins!
Don't you wonder when the last day you will jump will be? Don't you wonder when will be the last time you will run so fast it hurts? Don't you wonder when you will no longer have the luxury of being naked and being an insanely beautiful creature? There are joys that age strips from us. There are encumbrances thrust upon us - quickly. Some will slowly slip away, their youth draining from them, until one day they will realize that they haven't jumped in 20 years, they haven't run in 20 years, they haven't even tried for 20 years - and it will be too late. I will not be one of these people!
this body, however feeble, however weak and fragile, is the greatest and only gift that I have been given. It is all I possess on this earth, nothing more nothing less. I wish to take it to the ends of the world! I wish to enjoy every part of it- of this incredible planet! I hope to use every bit of strength that I hold. Unlock the wisdom that is inside, expose the flaws, I want to jump logs, climb trees, swim rivers until I have no breathe left to move.
Wouldn't be a shame if I were to die with energy or passion or intensity still left inside? Why should I store these things? When life ends, and it will, be it sooner or later, what will I have left to do? Nothing. There is nothing left, because I have spent it all away while I had the chance.'

Enjoy. Live free. Never stop moving. Die tired.

(Andrew Tipton)