Ahh, contentment. Ahh, satisfaction, These words even taste sweet when you speak them aloud. There have been poems written about them, songs written for them, and even lives lost in search of them. Isn't that really the key to ourt lives? After we've found our reason to exist in this world, and we've found ourt happiness within it, what more is there to want?
Ishmael poses a problem. And, as well know, every problem begs a solution. We've read this book and now we wonder what the heck we do with the things we've uncovered. Let sleeping wolves lie? I think not.
The problem, which has been ignored for so long, has been realized.
The ugly truth will no longer be ignored but instead looms threateningly in front of us, blocking the light of future for the human race, a future which we may very well have destroyed by paying no attention to the past. What to do, what to do? It seems that the only thing to do is to work toward a collective solution; to fundamentally change our lifestyles and adjust our habits in an extreme way. Others may argue that we need to blend the best parts of the “taker” lifestyle with the best of the “leaver” philosophy, creating a utopian society in which we all, the “community of life, “can live not only live happily but to truly live contentedly, with no façade of happiness but real meaning of purpose to which we can all wake up in the morning. Gee, that sounds nice. Forgive the first person sarcasm here, but if this could’ve been done, wouldn’t this type of panacea already have come to be? To borrow the colloquialism, blending the “best of both worlds” certainly sounds appealing, but I believe that the fundamental working philosophy of taker culture prevents this from happening. However, if there is no solution to be had as a group, then what are we left with but ourselves? Humans have been taught for centuries that individuals are weak, that they must come together as whole to be strong- take the bundle of sticks illustration as an example. Everything we’ve been told throughout our maturation stresses that we have to work together and build “synergy” to succeed in anything.
Feel free argue the point of working together all you like, but I digress- Individuality is not a prohibiting factor in solving the problem at hand. Nay, I say that individuality itself is the solution. Now, I’m not supposing that our culture does not reward individuality; it does. However, our culture stresses the selfish type that spawns jealousy and competition among own people. Therefore, we are seemingly not only at war with the planet, but also constantly battling among ourselves, and it cannot end until one thing is satisfied. Very simply, we are all looking for our reason to exist. Each night we lay down to rest, the majority of us are defeated in our internal quest to find our place in this world, to find where we truly belong. Few of us are satisfied because that is what taker culture does- it creates the illusion of contentment by surrounding us with material possessions and one-hit wonders, but in reality leaves us knowing that we are not whole. Now, I’d like you to have a moment to breathe and take in what you’ve just read. I want you, dear reader, to chew on your thoughts, digest your conclusions, and read on- I promise you answers. Onward!
We’ve established that no solution can be found when acting as a group; the human race as one. We cannot make blanket changes for every person. We’ve also supposed that the answer to solving this potentially catastrophic problem of ours is to use our individuality. How does this work? Making changes individually must work simply because our diversity prevents us from solving the problem any other way. We each must find what truly satisfies us enough that we no longer feel the need to destroy the world looking for a sense of belonging. The answer lies not in the taking of the world, but in the partaking of the world. This can be related in a concept of a hungry man sitting in front of a bountiful feast. Now, understand that this man is hungry, and every last bit of the food on the table is exactly to his liking.
All his favorites are present, and he doesn’t quite know where to start, so he begins to eat…and eat and eat. He gorges himself, thinking that he’ll only be satisfied when he has it all. However, what the man forgets are two things. First, that there are other guests waiting to eat who also enjoy the various delicacies that have been prepared. Second, and even more so, the man does not realize that he would’ve been just as happy had he only taken enough to tame his appetite, thus not only satisfying his hunger, but also avoided the feeling of being bloated. For some reason, every time this man sits down to a similar table, he feels that he must eat it all, and after a while, the natural consequences of overeating come- Obesity, diabetes, and even death. If we relate this man to taker culture, the food to the resources of earth, and the other dinner guests to all the non-human life on the planet, we can see quite easily that there is really is no valid reason to overeat, or as the case may be, to take everything for ourselves. We don’t need to have the world, we only need to find the parts of the world that will make us happy as individual people, and it is then and only then that we can find the true joy in life- Not just our own life, but the life of all other living things, the life of the planet, and perhaps most of all, the life of our future that could be so bright, I think I’ll need shades.
We must find joy for ourselves -by ourselves- so that we can put put all logic asleep and survive together.
For now, I'll say no more.
(unedited.mind)
Ishmael poses a problem. And, as well know, every problem begs a solution. We've read this book and now we wonder what the heck we do with the things we've uncovered. Let sleeping wolves lie? I think not.
The problem, which has been ignored for so long, has been realized.
The ugly truth will no longer be ignored but instead looms threateningly in front of us, blocking the light of future for the human race, a future which we may very well have destroyed by paying no attention to the past. What to do, what to do? It seems that the only thing to do is to work toward a collective solution; to fundamentally change our lifestyles and adjust our habits in an extreme way. Others may argue that we need to blend the best parts of the “taker” lifestyle with the best of the “leaver” philosophy, creating a utopian society in which we all, the “community of life, “can live not only live happily but to truly live contentedly, with no façade of happiness but real meaning of purpose to which we can all wake up in the morning. Gee, that sounds nice. Forgive the first person sarcasm here, but if this could’ve been done, wouldn’t this type of panacea already have come to be? To borrow the colloquialism, blending the “best of both worlds” certainly sounds appealing, but I believe that the fundamental working philosophy of taker culture prevents this from happening. However, if there is no solution to be had as a group, then what are we left with but ourselves? Humans have been taught for centuries that individuals are weak, that they must come together as whole to be strong- take the bundle of sticks illustration as an example. Everything we’ve been told throughout our maturation stresses that we have to work together and build “synergy” to succeed in anything.
Feel free argue the point of working together all you like, but I digress- Individuality is not a prohibiting factor in solving the problem at hand. Nay, I say that individuality itself is the solution. Now, I’m not supposing that our culture does not reward individuality; it does. However, our culture stresses the selfish type that spawns jealousy and competition among own people. Therefore, we are seemingly not only at war with the planet, but also constantly battling among ourselves, and it cannot end until one thing is satisfied. Very simply, we are all looking for our reason to exist. Each night we lay down to rest, the majority of us are defeated in our internal quest to find our place in this world, to find where we truly belong. Few of us are satisfied because that is what taker culture does- it creates the illusion of contentment by surrounding us with material possessions and one-hit wonders, but in reality leaves us knowing that we are not whole. Now, I’d like you to have a moment to breathe and take in what you’ve just read. I want you, dear reader, to chew on your thoughts, digest your conclusions, and read on- I promise you answers. Onward!
We’ve established that no solution can be found when acting as a group; the human race as one. We cannot make blanket changes for every person. We’ve also supposed that the answer to solving this potentially catastrophic problem of ours is to use our individuality. How does this work? Making changes individually must work simply because our diversity prevents us from solving the problem any other way. We each must find what truly satisfies us enough that we no longer feel the need to destroy the world looking for a sense of belonging. The answer lies not in the taking of the world, but in the partaking of the world. This can be related in a concept of a hungry man sitting in front of a bountiful feast. Now, understand that this man is hungry, and every last bit of the food on the table is exactly to his liking.
All his favorites are present, and he doesn’t quite know where to start, so he begins to eat…and eat and eat. He gorges himself, thinking that he’ll only be satisfied when he has it all. However, what the man forgets are two things. First, that there are other guests waiting to eat who also enjoy the various delicacies that have been prepared. Second, and even more so, the man does not realize that he would’ve been just as happy had he only taken enough to tame his appetite, thus not only satisfying his hunger, but also avoided the feeling of being bloated. For some reason, every time this man sits down to a similar table, he feels that he must eat it all, and after a while, the natural consequences of overeating come- Obesity, diabetes, and even death. If we relate this man to taker culture, the food to the resources of earth, and the other dinner guests to all the non-human life on the planet, we can see quite easily that there is really is no valid reason to overeat, or as the case may be, to take everything for ourselves. We don’t need to have the world, we only need to find the parts of the world that will make us happy as individual people, and it is then and only then that we can find the true joy in life- Not just our own life, but the life of all other living things, the life of the planet, and perhaps most of all, the life of our future that could be so bright, I think I’ll need shades.
We must find joy for ourselves -by ourselves- so that we can put put all logic asleep and survive together.
For now, I'll say no more.
(unedited.mind)
Wow...a stunning post. Thought provoking and powerful. I think I'll gorge myself at this table of thought for a bit longer and just relish in the smorgasbord of ideas. Bravo, unedited.mind.
ReplyDelete