Stop Making Sense

It is that which is beyond our 5 senses that we value most, love, peace, security.  If we have these things, we tend to disregard the things which are measured by our sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste.  Yet, we spend most of our lives involved in attaining only that which can be sensed, that which we can measure.


It seems the common mis-perception that the attainment of those things we can measure, money, material possession, sensual stimulation will result in the attainment of that which we can not measure.  All around are examples of the false nature of this concept.


Yet, we continue to feed our 5 senses which are never to be sated.




".........mathematical science after all has to do only with what is quantitative; where the qualitative begins, there its domain ends." - Rudolph Steiner, Mathematics and Occultism, A lecture, Amsterdam, June 21, 1904

Maintaining my mind, and the pond

morning on the pond.

As I walk along the shore of the small pond I recognize the many different sounds. I hear the bird calls.  I hear the croak/grunt of the frogs.  I catch the splash of a fish as it jumps.  I hear the plop, plop of the turtles as they dive off their sunny logs to hide from me as I approach.  I hear the wind as it pushes the leaves in the tree tops.  Even the sound of my own shoes crunching the twigs or squishing in the mud seems to have a place here that fits with the rest.

But I hear more.

The sound of combustion engines in cars, in lawn mowers or digging machines.  A helicopter as it passes miles away along the river.  None of these sounds makes me happy, or makes me smile, or seems to fit in a way that seems to add to the larger picture, the larger thing.

It is a strange thing to try to understand, this love for my life, my gratitude for this moment to be a human being.  Because I am a human being I can know how wonderful the rest of the world is.

Because I am a human being I can also know how ugly, how unlike the rest of creation, and how unpleasant I can make the world.

Why has man seemingly turned his back to the gift that is this situation we find ourselves in.  As if ungrateful, even vengeful, humanity seems to put itself upon the world as if to destroy it.  The very systems and cycles and relationships that give us life are constantly and increasingly threatened by our dissatisfaction with our place and our industrious genius as it is put to rape and destruction.

How many times will we destroy a existing relationship, entity, and then make an inferior and problematic means to replace it.  How many times will we hunt the buffalo to extinction, and then create feed lots full of hormone laden cows that live in horrible conditions and cause pollution rather than contribute to the larger cycle of living and dying?

Ships driven by wind and tide once carried us to the far reaches of the planet, extending our range for exchange and experience.  That wasn't enough, so we make great tankers that pollute the atmosphere and spill poisons upon the sea and require us to dig and drill and rape the planet of it's oil that has been locked up for thousands of years.  What highly destructive thing will we replace these things with when they are no longer enough?

My path, the one I am trying to discern thru all the noise and blurred vision of this speed inhuman,  is one of acceptance and gratitude and vision of things greater than my own self interests.

As I walk the path around this pond and pick up the broken glass, the shot gun shells, the plastic bottles, I am inspired to leave none of that behind myself.  Leave no wake, like a sailboat, use what is already here and leave no trail behind me so that another, many others can come and discover on their own, and recognize the beauty that will out last each of us.

It's not easy in this modern world to leave no ugly trail behind. To leave nothing behind that can't be reabsorbed easily into the world and is not toxic to another being.  But I have it in mind.  I keep it in the front of my mind.  Time spent near the pond helps me to keep it in mind.

We as human beings seem to have an amazingly large amount of access to power, but we also seem to lack the wisdom to use it reasonably.

A twisting circular path

I woke with a feeling of purpose.
Some how during my night of rest a part of me was thinking, pondering, planing.
On the motorcycle and off  I went, with a path in mind, but not sure about how the going would be, if it would be, but allowing it to unfold in front of me.

On this part of the path I learned that when the goal is not for my benefit, it is more likely to benefit others.  Seems simple enough, right?

I learned that most of us know just what are own biggest challenges are and we have ways of managing them, but we don't always choose to use those means.  That choice can only come from within.
I learned that the phrase "an inch is as good as a mile" can be used to decrease the distance between us, or to ignore the fact of that distance, especially in this modern time when we have such extreme means of communication and transportation, and thus we can find the community that we seek in with people we may never actually stand in front of because they are so many miles away, and with those down the road with whom we don't seem to be able to find the time to share a meal with, for our busy schedules.

"into every life a little rain must fall"  was once said, and I have found that "on every motorcycle ride, a little rain usually falls" is accurate.  Planning for it, embracing it, and sometimes stopping and watching it rather than trying to push on can make the difference between a great time and an epic misery.

Returning to home after a ride is a wonderful moment.  I'd fully intended not to leave home all day but instead made a big circle just so I could come back and really appreciate the place, and people (and dog) I'd left earlier.  The big circle trip allowed me to extend and strengthen the circle of that is my community.

Traveling with, Living with, "AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE."  Thanks for the day.

A foundation

Just thought I'd pass this along.  The originate from this web page:

The 10 Elements of Urban Homesteading | Urban Homestead ® - Path to Freedom  or http://urbanhomestead.org/urban-homestead-10-elements

Jules Dervraes is one of my heroes and in my opinion, should be considered a national hero.  His attitude reflects Integrity, Independence and Freedom, the founding principles of this country, so I have been led to understand.

He does not appear to be out to "conquer" anything except maybe sloth, unhealthy dependence, ignorance.

If only a tiny fraction of us could attain, what he and his family have, the world and our society would reflect the difference on countless levels, and thrive.

It isn't harsh or zealous, or dogmatic, but it does seem to be

Reasonable.

little things

Simple joy of a job done well,
Time well spent,
and no harm to others.

As we drove to the lake for the launching of my winter project, we made our way past loud, and shiny chromed motorcycles, as well as carbon fiber and titanium bicycles and their spandex clad riders, rolling thru the beautiful forest.

I've ridden across and up and down this country on a very high end motorcycle.  It was a good experience, but it was an expensive one too.  I put a lot of pollution in the air, used up a few sets of tires and spent resources that took me a long time to earn.  I can't do that anymore, I won't do that anymore.

In the back of my truck was a little red row boat, that cost me about $150 to build, maybe.  Lots of scrap wood in that boat.  Lots of stuff that was just lying around the shop.  Some left over paint and hardware.

In that boat were many very well spent winter months dreaming and scheming and figuring.  Many minutes of pulling a saw, screw a fastener, drawing lines on wood.  Many more hours puzzling over a way to make something fit or how to make it work best.  That was time well spent.  Messing about in or with boats has been some of my best time.

I will put my muscles to use to make this boat move, otherwise I may use the wind and tide.  All of these clean, renewable, sustainable sources of energy, gifts to us in this lifetime.

I can't find my recreation any longer in activities that pollute the planet, and possibly cause the sufferings of others by the machinations of those who would rip apart the earth, refine it and then sell it back to us at a cost so great as to be unmeasurable by us at this moment.

My boat is simple, but good.  I can use it and feel good about the trail it leaves in the water, just borrowing space for a moment and then the wake closes up behind, invisible, unnoticeable.  In time, hopefully many years from now, when I am done with it, it's wood will decay and melt into the earth again leaving little behind.  In the mean time I will pull at the oars, use this body I inhabit for the time, feel my muscles work, feel the sun, smell the forest, the water, hear the birds and frogs and fish jumping and be a part of the world around me, but not be put upon it as a scar or scourge.

When we learn a thing, we then become responsible for that knowledge.  If we know something to be true, but still ignore that truth, then aren't we hurt ourselves as well as others, possibly?  I have learned, and I hope to live responsibly, compassionately, in that knowledge.

Somebody show me a another thing man has created as beautifully smart, clean, and practical as a sailing boat.  Show me something as rewarding as being the captain of ones own ship, upon the water, upon the planet, not taking from the world anything that need harm, and yet receiving such joy, thrill, comfort, adventure, experience, humility, security, peace, perspective, freedom, enlightenment, education, companionship, hope, understanding......

'Simply messing about'

`This has been a wonderful day!' said he, as the Rat shoved off and took to the sculls again. `Do you know, I`ve never been in a boat before in all my life.'

`What?' cried the Rat, open-mouthed: `Never been in a--you never--well I--what have you been doing, then?'

`Is it so nice as all that?' asked the Mole shyly, though he was quite prepared to believe it as he leant back in his seat and surveyed the cushions, the oars, the rowlocks, and all the fascinating fittings, and felt the boat sway lightly under him.

`Nice? It's the ONLY thing,' said the Water Rat solemnly, as he leant forward for his stroke. `Believe me, my young friend, there is NOTHING--absolute nothing--half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats. Simply messing,' he went on dreamily: `messing--about--in--boats; messing----'

`Look ahead, Rat!' cried the Mole suddenly.

It was too late. The boat struck the bank full tilt. The dreamer, the joyous oarsman, lay on his back at the bottom of the boat, his heels in the air.

`--about in boats--or WITH boats,' the Rat went on composedly, picking himself up with a pleasant laugh. `In or out of 'em, it doesn't matter. Nothing seems really to matter, that's the charm of it. Whether you get away, or whether you don't; whether you arrive at your destination or whether you reach somewhere else, or whether you never get anywhere at all, you're always busy, and you never do anything in particular; and when you've done it there's always something else to do, and you can do it if you like, but you'd much better not. Look here! If you've really nothing else on hand this morning, supposing we drop down the river together, and have a long day of it?'----Kenneth Grahme, "The Wind and the Willows"

Living Music

The birds at the pond are

chirping,

squawking,

tweeting,

honking,

warbling,

trilling,

calling,

singing

The pond in the woods

 flying,

floating,

foraging,

standing,

diving,

preening,

dancing

Mr. & Mrs. Mallard

 waiting,

mating,

nurturing,

hatching,

staying,

leaving,

growing older

Does the beaver know which way the tree will fall?

Good company,

for me,

and

my dog,

on a cloudy day

Live music!

Went into the big city to hear some and see some musicians, guitarists, play.  I had heard some of their work on recordings previously, and though I enjoyed it, the experience of being in a small room and watching these artist make the most beautiful, fun, and magical sound come from their instruments takes the appreciation of their talents to a different level.

Pino Forastiere @ Rockwood Hall, NYC.

This is something of a paradox with technology for me.  Though we have so much more access to so much more of everything thru technology, and though it is possible for us to make recordings,  and to create in the digital medium, I think that it threatens a general appreciation for the work and dedication and creativity that many artists invest to be able to do what it is that they do.

I don't think this is true in all situations and certainly so much more art is accessible to so many more, but it is one thing to create a piece of music on a computer program and another to make a guitar speak to a room full of people via such artistic commitment and work.

I think about the music of Steve Reich, which I really love.  This music or something akin to it could be made on this computer which I type on, with a program on it called Garage Band.  It is Reich's composition that moves me, but to see and hear musicians perform his works makes it truly something  beyond what we can create as individuals.  That collaboration between human beings takes it to a level of the mystic or spiritual that cannot be achieved by simply playing a work back on a computer or recording device.

By the time we had navigated thru the insane traffic of NYC on a Sunday evening I was ready to just stay in the car and return home.  I felt terrible for my contributing by driving a car into the mess.  I felt exhausted by the chaos.  Of course, it was all worth it.  Seeing, hearing, laughing with and experiencing these artists was so uplifting and inspiring.

I got to purchase some CD's of their music, from the artists directly.  Money from my hands to theirs, music recordings from their hands to mine, expressions of deep gratitude from one to the other in broken english and italian.  People to people, no middle men or corporations, just human beings sharing human art and appreciations.

Next time I think I will travel in by the motorcycle or the train!

Rockwood Hall is a nice venue on the lower east side of NYC.  CandyRat records is the label that presented the artists:  Pino Forasiere, Craig D'Andrea, Trevor Gordon Hall, & Sergio Altamura.