I may have posted this here before, but for many people, the greatest gift life offers is that someday, preferably soon, they get to die — however frightening an anticipation/event death itself will likely be due to its total unknown and finality.
When suicide is simply not an option, it basically means there’s little hope of receiving an early reprieve from their literal life sentence.
Ergo, the following lines extracted from a much larger piece:
__
I awoke from another very bad dream, yet another horrid reincarnation nightmare
where having blessedly died I’m nonetheless bullied towards rebirth back into human form
despite my pleas I be allowed to rest in permanent peace.
I ask for the blessed purpose of my continuance. I insist upon a practical purpose!
Give me a real purpose, I cry out, and it’s not enough simply to live
nor that it’s a beautiful sunny day with colorful fragrant flowers!
I’m tormented hourly by my desire for emotional, material and creative gain
that ultimately matters naught. My own mind brutalizes me
like it has a sadistic mind of its own.
I must have a progressive reason for this harsh endurance!
Could there be people who immensely suffer yet convince themselves
they sincerely want to live when in fact they don’t want to die,
so great is their fear of Death’s unknown?
No one should ever have to repeat and suffer again a single second of sorrow that passes.
Nay, I will engage and embrace the dying of my blight!
This book sounds fascinating. My book club has just moved from fiction to also considering nonfiction books, and I'm thinking about suggesting this one. Most of the members of the club are decades younger than I...in midlife, while I am well into the second half of my life. I would love to have a serious discussion about life with them, and this will help. That said, I am eager to listen to the podcast next and see what the authors say about making meaning instead of chasing it. I believe that paying attention keeps leading me to discover ways in which I can use my strengths to fill a need out in the world that is important to me. I didn't "design" my life at all. I just allowed myself to be led. And when I wonder how I got where I am, I realize that something powerful must have led me here.
I really enjoyed this and am definitely going to listen to the podcast.
The characterisation of the first and second halves of life - and the idea of reaching that transition through design rather than crisis - really resonated.
However, a significant tension for me in this framework is the role of the phone. My observation of those attempting this transition is that the journey is endlessly diverted by digital addiction. You talk about the importance of availability and acceptance; it is exactly these two qualities that the phone kills most dramatically.
It closes off the space required for the second half of life to begin. You have a formidable idea or an insight as to how things can be, then you instinctively reach, scroll, and the thought fizzles.
I am eighty hours into a daily study of intentional silence on my commute, and I am convinced that the phone is the polar opposite of any spiritual improvement. It is surely the greatest barrier to the soul. I would be fascinated to hear more on this.
Formidable thinking here. I will certainly be buying the book
I agree. Some of the apps on my phone, beyond the ability to communicate from wherever I am, are vital for me...the maps and gps features have erased my fears of getting lost (I have absolutely no sense of direction) and the radar feature tells me what the weather is actually doing, regardless of what is forecast. The important thing is to remember that the smart phone is a tool, not a lifestyle.
Well said. I have thought long and hard about getting rid of my phone, but have decided against - even as I've learnt more and more about the damage I think it's doing.
As you say the goal is tool rather than lifestyle, owning it rather than it owning you. After much experimentation I think I've finally got there, through an intentional break / meditation strategy. It's convinced me that the phone has a far greater hold on our minds than we'd like to admit - much of its effects are only clearly seen in the rear view mirror.
I may have posted this here before, but for many people, the greatest gift life offers is that someday, preferably soon, they get to die — however frightening an anticipation/event death itself will likely be due to its total unknown and finality.
When suicide is simply not an option, it basically means there’s little hope of receiving an early reprieve from their literal life sentence.
Ergo, the following lines extracted from a much larger piece:
__
I awoke from another very bad dream, yet another horrid reincarnation nightmare
where having blessedly died I’m nonetheless bullied towards rebirth back into human form
despite my pleas I be allowed to rest in permanent peace.
I ask for the blessed purpose of my continuance. I insist upon a practical purpose!
Give me a real purpose, I cry out, and it’s not enough simply to live
nor that it’s a beautiful sunny day with colorful fragrant flowers!
I’m tormented hourly by my desire for emotional, material and creative gain
that ultimately matters naught. My own mind brutalizes me
like it has a sadistic mind of its own.
I must have a progressive reason for this harsh endurance!
Could there be people who immensely suffer yet convince themselves
they sincerely want to live when in fact they don’t want to die,
so great is their fear of Death’s unknown?
No one should ever have to repeat and suffer again a single second of sorrow that passes.
Nay, I will engage and embrace the dying of my blight!
This book sounds fascinating. My book club has just moved from fiction to also considering nonfiction books, and I'm thinking about suggesting this one. Most of the members of the club are decades younger than I...in midlife, while I am well into the second half of my life. I would love to have a serious discussion about life with them, and this will help. That said, I am eager to listen to the podcast next and see what the authors say about making meaning instead of chasing it. I believe that paying attention keeps leading me to discover ways in which I can use my strengths to fill a need out in the world that is important to me. I didn't "design" my life at all. I just allowed myself to be led. And when I wonder how I got where I am, I realize that something powerful must have led me here.
I really enjoyed this and am definitely going to listen to the podcast.
The characterisation of the first and second halves of life - and the idea of reaching that transition through design rather than crisis - really resonated.
However, a significant tension for me in this framework is the role of the phone. My observation of those attempting this transition is that the journey is endlessly diverted by digital addiction. You talk about the importance of availability and acceptance; it is exactly these two qualities that the phone kills most dramatically.
It closes off the space required for the second half of life to begin. You have a formidable idea or an insight as to how things can be, then you instinctively reach, scroll, and the thought fizzles.
I am eighty hours into a daily study of intentional silence on my commute, and I am convinced that the phone is the polar opposite of any spiritual improvement. It is surely the greatest barrier to the soul. I would be fascinated to hear more on this.
Formidable thinking here. I will certainly be buying the book
I agree. Some of the apps on my phone, beyond the ability to communicate from wherever I am, are vital for me...the maps and gps features have erased my fears of getting lost (I have absolutely no sense of direction) and the radar feature tells me what the weather is actually doing, regardless of what is forecast. The important thing is to remember that the smart phone is a tool, not a lifestyle.
Well said. I have thought long and hard about getting rid of my phone, but have decided against - even as I've learnt more and more about the damage I think it's doing.
As you say the goal is tool rather than lifestyle, owning it rather than it owning you. After much experimentation I think I've finally got there, through an intentional break / meditation strategy. It's convinced me that the phone has a far greater hold on our minds than we'd like to admit - much of its effects are only clearly seen in the rear view mirror.
It does! I actually panic if I’m out and realize I left my phone at home. And don’t even get me started on the time I thought I’d lost it!