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Another story, a true story from somewhere in my own ancestry, told to me by my grandmother, is a story about some religious folk, near the end of the 1800’s, Seventh Day Adventists, I believe, who heard from their preacher that the ‘end’, the so-called rapture, would come that year. You see, whenever a century comes near an end, the fatalist-minded religious think it’s time to go. These dates are just numbers, people. Nothing more. So the father decided to not put out a garden that season (you know, back then that was your grocery store). As you can tell, the end didn’t happen, and the whole family went hungry that winter. And if I remember the story correctly, they stopped their support of that faith. Well, at least I hope they came to their senses.
This is sad. This is ignorance. There is no guy, with a personality to boot, controlling things, like the ‘Wizard of Oz’. There is no man behind the curtain. This is a misconception. Don’t get me wrong, though. I can understand the reasoning for an all-powerful deity. That light to shine in the chaos. Remember the child. We want to hear, “Yes, this is the job you are to take,†or, “This house will suit you and your wife and your kids to come.â€
It is frightening. The world gives us daily reasons to fear and be afraid. We are blind and naked amidst the wolves. Today, could be robbery. Tomorrow, could be fire. The next, financial disaster. First thing in the morning, you are barely missed by a speeding truck. Lucky you are. That night on the news: A man in this neighborhood, killed by a truck, wife and kids left behind to fend for themselves, no parents, some family on the other side of the country. (God help us! Show us the way!)
But there ain't no man in the big chair, and there ain't no real “wayâ€. There’s only you and me, and we’re just here to be free, during our short stay.
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We are huge. We cover this planet like ants on an anthill. We are everywhere. And it has changed us dramatically. There is a book on this called The Human Zoo by Desmond Morris and it greatly and very accurately explains how the tribe has been lost due to the estrangement of one another in the cities. Too many people have come to live in any given urban area for one person to get to know anyone by name. I look at the idea of the old world village, where everyone knew each other and saw each other on a daily basis, and can see how vastly different the modern community is. But now, as it describes in this particular book, we have lost that sense of community and have chosen to simply alienate and treat others more like obstacles; walking down sidewalks, never making eye contact, being alone and, thus, cold and unfeeling. Which is bad for our minds.
We need community. The author makes an interesting note of how our ‘tribe’ has become the list of names in our address books. Our family has become friends and business acquaintances. However, this coldness has stagnated our interaction. Instead of dealing with strangers, we ignore them as much as possible, but we cannot do this. We need interaction. Others are important and we need ways to relate, even if we don’t know each other. We need to communicate on some level. As I have said before, I speak with the premise of a greater connection of the mind and body, and now let me extend that to a greater connection of all our minds. So communication is extremely important.
The Razor's Edge, The Ninth Configuration, Army Of Darkness, Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqatsi, Naqoyqatsi, A Brief History Of Time, The Big Lebowski
The Office
the Plant, The Balance, A Feast Of Phrases, The Psychosomatic Survival Guide