The Journey

 You don’t have to ever grow old

Why do we get old? We don’t; it is quite literally up to me and my perception of the world, my state of consciousness. Most certainly, my body will age with time. I will physically advance in years. But the mind, if I choose, will stay young, curious, and vibrant. For the youth of today, there will be no old age in the traditional sense. The prevailing view is that you are slowly worn out by work, like an old machine; you retire, have some fleeting moments of joy, and you die. Potentially, for the post-Millennials, due to modern medical advances, there will only be life and more life. This is the ideal, unfortunately.

What happens is that we are pre-programmed to mentally age. We first experience a form of ageism (1) when we are adolescents, many times still pubescent. We are criticized for being young, perhaps we have made some errors in our school or housework, and we are told to “grow up.” This then dramatically introduces us to the concept of bodily time and how we fit into it: I will mature, I will get old, and I will eventually die. The built-in obsolescence of most products further concretizes this concept. This can produce pure angst in some young people. “I don’t want to get old,” is a common refrain. (2) Old will be but a blight on my life.

This is pure nonsense to anyone who has lived a full life. (3) I know no one who has lived an interesting and dynamic existence who has ever claimed that they wanted to return to a time of physical youth — no one. They were all happy that they had had the opportunity to be alive. So then comes the question: how do I insulate myself from the vagaries of life and keep my mind youthful? Many instances, of course, only reinforce this concept of age — especially with regards to my being: the aches and pains that come to pass because of the kilometers of life that the body, figuratively, has driven.

The only solution to this conundrum, in my estimation, is through me. I must put myself in a situation where I am continuously bombarded with new thoughts, new ideas, and new challenges. Where are these opportunities? They are everywhere, but they must be actively sought. The first rule of all is to never retire. This idea has continued to dominate. The simple query is, if you are truly enjoying your career, why would you want to stop? This is a concept that was introduced into Western thought by Bismarck in Germany in 1883. (4) It was designed to remove the revolutionaries from the workplace and replace them with stronger, more malleable young people. The next is to keep a notebook and fully document the machinations of life.

Finally, the most important of all, be a mentor to younger people: teach at a school, a church, or a university. Present yourself to the younger generation. You have a lot to give, and they are waiting to accept. Young minds are filled with exciting new ideas: not all mature and well-thought-out, but still fresh and energetic.

To not grow old, therefore, is simply a choice — make the right one for you and your life. The great author and educator, Louise May Alcott, (5) leaves us with a thought: Have regular hours for work and play; make each day both useful and pleasant, and prove that you understand the worth of time by employing it well. Then youth will be delightful, old age will bring few regrets, and life will become a beautiful success. (Parts of this essay were first published in 2024)                              

A closing thought: I have a friend who still drives a car, has a girlfriend, reads copious amounts of books, and is a better historian than I am. At 95, he is my model of an aged person. This is in comparison to the broken individuals we pass by on the streets or the dissolute celebrities we read about. He is my estimation of a gentleman and scholar — an individual skilled in passing on his lessons of life to his grandchildren, students, and many friends. He simply knows what his mission is.  

To sum up: This week, we spoke about getting old and how to philosophically reflect on the process.

To be noted: Plan your life as if you will live forever, and live your life as if you will die today.

Just for fun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JYjcwW9MmM

For reflection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AeZbgfEgO4&ab_channel=CaughtInProvidence

This week, on your spirited walk, please feel your body and delight in its continuity.

Every day, look for something magical and beautiful.

Don’t be a wage slave – critical thinking is great!

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Quote: Age is only in the mind.

Footnotes:

1) https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-ageism-2794817

2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHCob76kigA&ab_channel=LukasGraham

3) https://personalexcellence.co/blog/101-ways-to-live-your-life-to-the-fullest/

4) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_retirement

5) https://www.britannica.com/biography/Louisa-May-Alcott

Knowledge

The Weather

The weather has a disproportionate effect on all of us. When it is a brilliant sunny day — not too hot and not too cold — we respond well. If it is cool and dark winter weather, however, we have the tendencyto be not so brilliant and joyous. Why is this? There are many physiological reasons for this phenomenon.

The major way we perceive the weather, however — or the day, for that matter — is through the mind: perception. (1) I deem it to be a grand day, a great day; it is, regardless of the circumstances. You can think of a time when the weather truly didn’t matter. Perhaps you had an appointment, or were in love and had to be with your beloved. There are many telling times in life when the external is truly trumped by the internal recognition of something more important, more valuable.

How, then, does one appeal to this side of the self, such that external phenomena truly do not matter? It must undoubtedly begin with an understanding of consciousness — my consciousness. If I am not here in this reality, then I do not have to be concerned with the mundane or the day-to-day. The real secret is to possess the kind of personal power that allows one to truly be autonomous — an independent agent in the grand unfolding of reality.

Recently, I was in Vancouver, conversing with a man who claimed that he was seventy-five years old. Now, looking at the brightness of his eyes and the tone of his skin, you would have placed him at a far younger age. He was a chemical engineer by training and had traveled all over the world in his career. Listening to him speak, you would conclude that travel is one component — one piece of the puzzle — that allows you to view the external as important. Voyaging is necessary to help you develop an internal understanding that we are all the same. When I cut my hand — whether I am pink, orange, black, or blue — the blood that flows out is red.

He also continued to be physically active. He was off on a bicycle trip around Morocco as we spoke.

Another man I conversed with was equally interesting. He had been born in Japan and had lived there until he was ten years old. He shared his thoughts on the stoicism of the Japanese — the necessity of retaining one’s face, your personal dignity, in the face of adversity. Drinking too much alcohol, for example, is acceptable if you do not become a monster — if you simply nod off slowly into an intoxicated slumber.

An equally edifying experience was riding on the bus. I sat beside a stunningly good-looking woman of seventy or so. From her comportment and family history, I would say her estate was expropriated by Poland after World War II. (2) They were forced to move to a reconstituted Germany with absolutely nothing. Some five years later, she came to Canada, married, and started a new life. She had overcome tremendous adversity, and yet still “held her head high.”

Juxtaposed across the aisle were two drug addicts — one in a wheelchair, having, I assume, lost a leg to addiction. They looked incredibly sick. What made their internal lives so painful that they destroyed their external reality? I don’t know. But in the end, it is up to the self to control the inner demons, isn’t it? We all have them. So, in the end, when I awake in the morning, I can decide whether it is a good day or a bad day. Controlling my feelings about the weather is an interesting way to begin. Seneca (3) leaves us with a thought: A change of scene (or weather) won’t fix internal emotional issues; the remedy must come from within, managing your “inner climate.”

A closing thought:Modern society wants us to apologize: Oh, I was an addict because I was abused as a child; I was never loved; I was born poor, of the wrong ethnicity — in the wrong city; the list goes on and on and is overwhelming, actually. In the end, it is solely up to me — my mind, the way I face consciousness. I must have a deep desire to educate myself physically, psychologically, and spiritually.

If I do this properly, I will be responsible for me and my emotions. My moods and emotions, how I respond to a situation, are a matter of choice, no matter how hard this is to fully comprehend. There is thus joy even in a downpouring rain.

To sum up:  This week, we spoke about my emotions and how I control them.

To be noted: From Zig Ziglar (4) — You cannot tailor-make the situations in life, but you can tailor-make the attitudes to fit those situations.

Just for fun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swloMVFALXw&list=RDswloMVFALXw&start_radio=1

For reflection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sQ_cfZ8q9k

This week, when walking in the rain, please take a moment to reflect on how you feel today.

Every day, look for something magical and beautiful.

Don’t be a wage slave –critical thinking is great!

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Quote:You can control your emotions

Footnotes:

1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ORz1-LWrjo

2) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territorial_changes_of_Poland_immediately_after_World_War

3) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waq9S6kaTlU&t=79s

4) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdsaBRzLnZA

Knowledge

How does one stay in the light?

I recently had the misfortune of watching the news for several moments at a friend’s home. It was the holiday season, so we were, rather curiously I thought, given a special dose of negativity: murder, mayhem, pillage, chaos, and the like. It was easy to see how joyful feelings could be quickly extinguished. There was a stark juxtaposition of values. On the one hand, because of the season, the world was resplendent with joy — “Joy to the World, the Lord Has Come” (1) — goodwill to all. On the other hand, the news presented darkness, pain, and endless suffering.

Continue reading How does one stay in the light? →
Friends

Friendship

This is a topic that is fraught with undue amounts of pain and frustration. When we gain consciousness at 20 or so, we realize, fundamentally, that we are alone. — at least all thoughtful people do. Life then becomes an attempt to bridge the distance between other beings in our society and meet people who are like me

— who understand what I’m about. This is most certainly an arduous journey. At its most simple, friendship is something that must be earned. It cannot be simply acquired like a piece of clothing or a new pair of shoes. 

Aristotle breaks friendship down into three areas (1): The most basic could be called business friendship, “Friendships of Utility.” These are relationships that have a mutual benefit. Perhaps you have a favorite client or supplier that you enjoy having lunch with. They are nice, but you have no emotional attachment to them. If you need to make a business decision and stop contact with them, you will.

Then there are the friends that you meet once or twice a week. You can have a coffee or drink together — or go to a concert or to the movies. Developing further closeness is limited potentially by age or ambition, or yet by social class. The Philosopher (2) calls these “Friendships of Pleasure.”

The final friendship possesses a deep spiritual and emotional connection. This is the so-called “Friendship of the Good.” Virtue-based friendships are built on mutual respect and admiration for each other’s work, for example, and a commitment to moral excellence. If we are fortunate, here is where my soul mate (3) resides  — the love of my life.

On a non-sexual level, this encapsulates the “mate” that is understood in the Australian environment or the “good buddy” that we often talk about in North America. In life, we achieve very, very few of these friendships, and, as we grow in years, we often fail to replace them because of age, or time or circumstance.   

The result, most telling of all, unfortunately, is that a disproportionate amount of older people live alone. (4) Many of these individuals are in a state of deep psychological suffering and loneliness. The seniors’ night out organized by the local church or community center is simply not enough. Here is also where we find the dog or cat to assist in one’s isolation. The true solution to this neurosis is to recognize that the relationship with your best friend must begin with yourself. This then extends to God, Gaia, or the Universe and ultimately to other people. All other friendships, intimate and otherwise, are thus bonuses on the turbulent path of life.

The great humanitarian Dr. Albert Schweitzer (5) leaves us with a thought: In everyone’s life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit. (Parts of this essay were first published in 2023)

A closing thought:In the Internet Age, we are bombarded with imagery. It is important, I feel, to protect oneself from the onslaught of nonsense that threatens to overwhelm and nauseate us. This can only be done through prayer, meditation, and introspection. This strengthens your relationship with God, as you see him, and shields all human beings from the many vicissitudes of life.

To sum up:  This week, we spoke about friendship.

To be noted: From Helen Keller (6) — Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light.

Just for fun: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo2qQmj0_h4&ab_channel=acdcVEVO

For reflection: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7TD8cfZOIU&ab_channel=BingeSociety

This week, on your wonderful walk, please ponder what friendship means to you.

Every day look for something magical and beautiful.

Don’t be a wage slave –critical thinking is great!

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Quote: Live your life in a state of wonder and imagination.

Footnotes:

1) https://www.marieclaire.com/sex-love/a4028/friendships-aristotle-utility-ethics-lifestyles/

2) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristotle

Aristotle was revered among medieval Muslim scholars as “The First Teacher,” and among medieval Christians like Thomas Aquinas as simply “The Philosopher,” while the poet Dante called him “the master of those who know.”

3) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soulmate

4) https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/may/16/a-new-start-after-60-alone-for-the-first-time-in-my-life-i-learned-how-to-be-happy

5) https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1952/schweitzer/biographical/

6) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERbcoJ5V8Ow

Musings

The seven deadly sins: which one have you committed?

I recently watched a video of the hot dog eating competition at Nathan’s on Coney Island, New York. (2) Disgusting would be an understatement. Now I am not conservative when it comes to extreme events. I am as titillated as the next person when I watch someone jump out of an airplane without a parachute fall into an enormous net, and survive. (3) But, the food thing, I don’t get.

As parents, we plead with our children to develop their table manners. Your social class, and therefore your business or matrimonial acceptability, is still determined by how you hold your knife and fork. What is this sort of nonsense saying to our young people?Upwards of 30% of Americans are obese. (4) Is gluttonycool? This acceptance of the base and obscene is not the correct way. Why not hold ourselves to a higher standard of taste and quality? We do not have to be pompous and condescending, but surely there is a social level, a litmus test of decency, that must exist. If we do not want to be wage slaves, we must affect some style, some poise. We must develop our personal brand.

Some suggest that the Internet is pulling us to the lowest common denominator. “The assimilation of taboo images to the everyday language of doing business produces a strange effect. It domesticates the taboo while at the same time making the everyday transactional world more porous, and more open to the forbidden. The wolf of unbridled appetite slips into everyday convention in the sheep’s clothing of commercial language.…Every private thought is performed for public consumption, and every leisure moment (from toilet training to lovemaking) is a highly focused search for a specific gratification, guided by experts serving you in their field. No unexpected events or unanticipated human contact need apply.”(5)

At a recent small talk session, a young woman asked, “What is true wisdom?” It must be associated with the ability to think lucidly about what is good for you, your society, and mankind. Ask anyone, “Is the world a violent place?” and they will answer in the affirmative. This is all without any personal experience  — pure falsehood. The world is not comprised of violence, anger, and fear. It is comprised of good, kind and loving people and experiences. Yes, bad things do happen, but not usually, not to most people. Therefore, when our behavior is elegant and sophisticated, we advance the good and minimize the moral violence in the world.

Rabbi Harold Kushner (b. 1935), the author of Why Bad Things Happen to Good People, leaves us with a thought: If you have been brave enough to love, and sometimes you’ve won and sometimes you’ve lost; if you have cared enough to try, and sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn’t; if you have been bold enough to dream and found yourself with some dreams that came true and a lot of broken pieces of dreams that didn’t, that fell to earth and shattered,then you can look back from the mountaintop you now find yourself standing on, like Moses contemplating the tablets that would guide human behavior for a millennia, resting in the Ark alongside the broken fragments of an earlier dream. And you, like Moses, must realize how full your life is and how richly you are blessed. (Parts of this essay were first published in 2017)

A closing thought:There is a concrete planter next to our building. It is filled with aquatic plants — lily pads and the like. Recently, I noticed two young children, a boy of around three and a girl of close to two, staring intently at a dragonflynestled on one of the fronds. It wasa scene from a Claude Monet (1840-1926) painting. Now, as we all know, time is irreplaceable. This magical moment will never happen again. Did their father catch it? No, he was too busy on his cell phone.

To sum up: This week we spoke about the danger of the Internet and the acceptance of the most banal, the most basic. This is not human nature, hopefully. We, as people, want the best for ourselves, our loved ones and our society. Through education, we will develop the necessary thinking skills to confront an ever-changing world.

To be noted: I pride myself on remembering names. Recently I had the humbling experience of confusing not one name, but two. I somehow transposed the name of one person onto the figure of another. The Taiwanese, of course, are always extremely polite. It was not until the end of the evening that a kind soul was good enough to tell me that I had been misaddressing these two people the whole time. To “rub salt in the wound,” this was after I had been complimented on my excellent memory, by the same people. 

Just for fun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWx_HlL3k24&ab_channel=TotalBaroque

For reflection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKENclPUUBc&ab_channel=Bite-sizedPhilosophy

This week, please reflect on your control over your Internet usage.

Every day look for something magical and beautiful.

Don’t be a wage slave –critical thinking is great!

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Quote: Goodness and kindness await all those who seek. The universe is just: perhaps not always fair, but just.

Footnotes:

1) http://www.bibleinfo.com/en/questions/what-are-seven-deadly-sins

2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAXXy75msQM

3) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qF_fzEI4wU

4) https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/health-statistics/overweight-Obesity

5) Against the Machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob, by Lee Siegel

Time

Catch the moment

I am, but one of more than eight billion human beings, and yet each of us is unique. My thoughts are my own, private unto me. We live in the slipstream of the mind — from a magical beginning to an immortal end.

I am caught in an immense storm of consciousness. It rages onward, increasing in intensity, until — on rare occasions — I experience a moment of calm. This is the eye of the tempest. (1) There is an eerie stillness in this pause, and with it a deep trepidation: the fear that I might miss something, fail to reflect upon life, and soon be swept away once again as the typhoon of consciousness resumes its force.

How am I to “catch this moment” and truly give myself a moment of introspection and be at peace? This question defines my life, as it does everyone’s. Like others, I am busy. I take little time in my working day to ruminate, though I know I should.

Then, the other day, I was given a gift. I was rushing into a shop, slightly late, when a glint of sunshine overwhelmed me. It felt hot upon my cheek and struck with an intensity I have rarely experienced. In that instant, I was reminded to catch the moment. This oft-overused phrase is, in truth, entirely up to me. I am not unique in experiencing familiar human emotions — anxiety, fear, doubt — but I stand apart from others through my free will and how I choose to act in the world. I choose. I am not merely a victim of circumstance.

How, then, do so many suffer and live out tragic, unfulfilled lives? Joseph Campbell tells us that the hero’s journey (2) exists in all of us. It lies dormant until we act — unless we take those hesitant, halting steps toward somewhere we do not yet fully understand, we will never have the opportunity to be fully alive. Once begun, the journey carries irrevocable consequences for our lives.

This voyage is opposed by conformity and comfort. At first glance, life seems good enough. People say, “Why should I upset my fixed and serene life? I’m happy.” Yet what often follows is the angry rebellion of the soul against an inauthentic life. (3) The seven-year itch, the midlife crisis, the mental breakdown — these are merely different names for the same condition, when one’s being can no longer endure the falsehood.

“Is this all there is?” we ask. “I am financially secure, but I am not happy.” There is a profound sadness in this realization. One hopes to recognize this tragedy in others, not to discover it too late in oneself.

How do we avoid succumbing to mediocrity? We begin each day as if it were a special gift — an opportunity to begin anew. The past has been put to bed. The future is an illusion. Everything, in this moment, is up to me. And I begin, quite simply, by catching the moment.  The Buddhist monk and peace activist, Thich Nhat Hanh, (4) leaves us with a thought: Life is available only in the present moment. If you abandon the present moment, you cannot live the moments of your daily life deeply.

A closing thought: It is easy to declare oneself a victim of circumstance: I have no choice. This is the life I was given. This is nonsense. We all possess free will, and with it the power to choose our path forward. Many say they do not know what this means. They do not know where to begin or where the door might be found. Here, I must ask a final question: Who is my teacher? The answer, of course, is myself. Given this truth, I need only open my notebook and begin to write. I can start small — with the day and the date — but, in time, I will write passages that speak to me. I must learn to be just a little brave, to realize my full potential.

To sum up: This week, we spoke about catching the moment to gain power in your life. 

To be noted: From John F. Kennedy — Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men.

Just for fun:

For reflection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7nnUDz-1HA&t=4s

This week, on your introspective walk, please contemplate your moments.

Every day, look for something magical and beautiful.

Don’t be a wage slave – critical thinking is great!

http://www.dbawageslave.com

Quote: Remember to catch the moment

Footnotes:

1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_(cyclone)

2) https://www.jcf.org/learn/joseph-campbell-heros-journey

3)https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/prescriptions-life/201105/the-inauthentic-life-threat-your-physical-and-financial-health

4)https://www.plumvillage.org

To be free, spiritually, emotionally and financially is your birthright.