With this third time of me bringing fresh meat to the Colony, i am sure to finally get the recognition that i deserve. Hopefully, i will be promoted up the ranks and will be remembered as “The Great Provider” by the Colony. (All of this voluminous Beetle Meat is tough to move, by the way!) I will persevere and will get this wonderful bounty to the Colony.
Goodness! I keep hearing the huge, bipedal ape up above, with his camera, singing the following song to me:
“Getting to know you Getting to know all about you Getting to like you Getting to hope you like me…”
Hauling Beetle Meat to the Colony. … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
[First, a few quick notes: 1. Albert Einstein, a vegetarian, and pacifist, had some of the best ideas about how to end all wars. For instance, he advocated countries systematically, in an intelligent and coordinated fashion, exchanging military personal on an equal basis, thereby making invasions into other countries (because of nefarious goals) rather impossible. But people don’t tend to listen to pacifists. 2. Most people just do not see the gravity of certain things, the seriousness of certain important things; they are oblivious, conform and fall in line, and life passes them by… and the many miracles never happen.] 3. This may not have much to do with anything, but here are what i hear as lyrics in the YouTube video of the Dharma for One song, as sung by Jethro Tull (live) at the Isle of Wright Festival. (This song, played in their first album, did not originally have any words/lyrics.)
Dharma, seek and you will find Truth within your mind, Dharma. Dharma, each to his own we say, Together we’ll end our stream, Dharma. Dharma, mad-time confusion burns, Seek-money never learns, Dharma. Truth is like freedom, it doesn’t fool me, Being true to yourself, never think that you’re free. Dharma will come eventually, Tao. Dharma, Dharma… Dharma, each to his own we sing, Together we’ll end our stream, Dharma. _________________________________________________________________________
Today is my birthday. I was born on November 4th, 1951. When i was the age to be eligible to be drafted (or not) concerning the Vietnam war, i was very concerned about what my draft number — according to the U.S.A. Draft Lottery — would be. I was (and still am) a pacifist and was not at all interested in going to war; i am a vegetarian; i don’t even care to contribute to the killing of animals. The lower the draft number that one is assigned, out of 365 (366), the higher the chances of you being drafted. Draft numbers were selected and assigned, via a Draft Lottery, according to your date of birth; the Draft Lottery, which was held to determine the draft status for my age-group, was held on December 1, 1970. So what was my draft number — assigned to my date of birth — after the Draft Lottery was completed? It was 39. I detested that number. I still detest it. It, being a very low number, meant that i definitely would be selected to go to the war. I was very disquieted about my “very draftable” draft number of 39. Circumstances being what they were, i went to college, where a student deferment was applicable. Later, when student deferments were terminated, i had to — because of my low 39 daft number — submit extensive paperwork requesting conscientious objector status.
So, while in college, around the time that i was becoming a vegetarian, i was visiting a friend of mine in his dormitory room. He and i were both avid fishermen; we would often go fishing together (on the weekends). On that particular day, my friend was not feeling well, so he could not go fishing with me (after i had invited him to). Right before i left his room, he gave me — following our brief discussion about music — a large Jethro Tull LP record album that i had never heard or seen before; it was the first album that the group had ever made. Since i liked the group, i thanked him for lending me the album; i left his dormitory room, and put the album on my bed, face up. (I did not look at the back of the album cover.) I went fishing.
I went fishing, alone, at the campus lake. As i fished, i began feeling immensely connected with the fish. One began seeing them as not being separate from what one was. I began seeing their pain as my pain… (or, rather, the “I” was absent and one was everything that was around). Around the same time at the lake, i began feeling like someone or something was watching the fishing; it was a very definite feeling, and i felt very embarrassed to be “seen” fishing (although no one was physically around).
I went back to my dormitory room, without any fish. After a short while, after relaxing a bit, i went over to the record album, that was on my bed, that my friend had given to me, looked at it and (when about to play it) turned it around to look at the back cover. The following is a picture of the album’s back cover. The album, released in the U.S. in February of 1969, is titled “This Was.”
To exist as nothing, psychologically, is not an unfavorable, weak state. Going beyond everything that you have been and believe in — instantly, without motive — is one of the most positive things, for it is of innocence, wholeness (beyond fragmentary reactions), and freedom. In fact, always continuing as mere reaction (from the old memory bank of stale ideas and images) is the continuation of sorrow. Sorrow must inevitably occur when mental things are second-hand and are constituted of mere reactions. Of course, thought/thinking must frequently manifest for one to do certain necessary things proficiently, with care. However, remaining in (and “as”) thought/thinking habitually, when such thinking is unnecessary, is sorrow and over-reacting. (It’s like endlessly clinging to a stream of shadows when — with deeper awareness — such shadows can be seen to be superficial and often rather insignificant.)
We, unfortunately, were miseducated to associate internal emptiness with internal poverty. Pure, uncontaminated, psychological emptiness is the most positive action, for it is of a pristine, orderly wholeness; merely being the reaction of thinking, however, is essentially inaction… dullness. Unfabricated emptiness is of a wholeness that is beyond mere sequential reaction in (and “as”) time; in that is vast energy, real freedom.
Well, you can clearly see that her cerebral area has expanded significantly thanks to help from her mother having had ingested my blood DNA in the distant past. The many offspring in the large egg sac that she is now carrying will undoubtedly have the same attributes.
(See Tuesday’s post, if you haven’t, to clarify this ongoing Halloween mystery. Maybe you’ll get bitten next!)
Fishing Spider (2) Ain’t She a Beauty?! Photo by Thomas Peace c.2019
[Over the weekend, i had a heart attack and went to the hospital. I’ve been a strict vegetarian since 1973, and this sudden heart thing — with arterial blockage and all — certainly came as a big shock; this is especially since, lately, i’ve been eating mostly just whole, organic foods… and i was no longer eating eggs, while the cheese that i ate, twice a week, was “no-fat cheese,” with just a little organic regular cheese sprinkled on top (additionally). I’ve been exercising daily, for years, on an indoor Schwinn bike. Heart disease runs in my family and, apparently, heredity plays a way bigger role in this than i had suspected. I didn’t get any stents; i had 40% to 50% blockage (in a curved area that is an undesirable site to place stents in); additionally, i had 100% blockage in a much smaller but significant artery. So they are treating me with medication. One of the medications that they are giving me is Lipitor, to help reduce LDL cholesterol, but my LDL levels are already low. I am back home and am doing well so far. I will not likely be making comments to my blogs (like i did in the past) for a while, and i probably will not be visiting other blogs as much, like i did in the past. The upcoming posts that i had made and had prescheduled (such as this one, below) will continue for a little while; after that, i will likely just post once or twice a week at the most. Thank you for your consideration and support! Tom]
A few years back, around this time of year, i was taking a little nap on the living room floor while Marla, my wonderful wife, was watching television. I was wearing shorts, and when i woke up and looked toward my legs, i saw a really huge spider suddenly run from my leg area. Since i’ve been a nature-lover all of my life, constantly examining and appreciating insects, spiders, frogs, snakes, and stuff on an ongoing basis, i did not panic. I caught the very large spider and put it in a glass jar. I did take photos of it back then. It was a Fishing Spider. Fishing Spiders tend to live around water, and we live right on a river. This spider was so very huge; i wondered how on earth it could have gotten into our modern, well-sealed house, but it did! This one looked like a tarantula; Fishing Spiders can get to be over 3 inches (8 cm) across. Anyway, i released the spider safely into our backyard by the river.
Later that evening, i noticed that on one of my legs, i had two sizable fang marks. No doubt, they were from the huge spider. I kid you not — and Marla can verify this — i had those fang mark scars on my leg for 3 to 4 months. I did not have any swelling or noticeable side-effects (except for a little craving to eat insects now and then)…tee-hee. So, this large spider probably ingested some of my blood (and blood DNA). Fishing Spiders can inject venom, but it is not dangerous to humans unless you are allergic to it.
So, the story ends… NOT! Just a little while ago, Marla spotted a big Fishing Spider on the front outside wall of our home. I took pictures of it, thinking that it would be perfect for Halloween. It had a big egg-case that it was protecting. I did not disturb it or harm it, of course, since it could be an offspring from the aforementioned spider that bit me. Epidemiological studies suggest that DNA ingested by animals can directly influence future generations and future evolutionary trends for that animal. These spiders could be carrying around my DNA.
Come home to papa! Thanks for showing me the egg-case of the little babies you have made! I feel so proud! 🙂 (I’ll post another photo of this beauty on Wednesday.)
Fishing Spider (1) Ain’t She A Beauty?! Photo by Thomas Peace c.2019
[Note: This is a very unusual (very rare) Praying Mantis for our north-central Illinois area. It is probably a Carolina Mantis. These are southern mantids but, due to global warming, are moving more north. This one has wonderful chameleonic abilities. Note how it amazingly blends in with the different color tones of the park bench. It is a female and seems to be loaded with fertile eggs. It may not have mated with a male at any time whatsoever. Female mantises can lay many completely fertile eggs without a male. When this happens, the offspring are perfect clones of the mother.]
Chameleonic Praying Mantis. … Photo by Thomas Peace c.2019
(Please “like” this post if you perceive the seriousness of it, not because you like what is happening.)
The remote Cocos Islands in the Indian Ocean are covered by 413.6 million pieces of plastic debris weighing 262 tons.
People around the world could be ingesting five grams of microplastic each week, the equivalent of eating a credit card.
July 2019 surpasses July 2016 as the hottest month in recorded history.
Emissions of the powerful greenhouse gas methane from ammonia-fertilizer plants are 100 times greater than what’s reported by the industry.
So far this year, 182 dead gray whales have washed up along the Pacific Coast, many likely having starved to death because of changing fish populations in warming waters.
In April 2019, for the first time ever, more US electricity generation came from renewables than from coal.
Human activity threatens 1 million species of plants and animals with extinction.
A heatwave bakes India. Temperatures in Rajasthan reach 123 degrees F, and the four reservoirs that supply Chennai (population 9.1 million) go dry.
Republican lawmakers in 18 states want to criminalize protests against fossil fuel infrastructure, like pipelines.
By the end of 2018, 11 million people were employed in renewable energy worldwide.
Current White House officials suppress State Department testimony that human-caused climate change will be “possibly catastrophic.”
More than 1.8 million people object to a Trump proposal to strip gray wolves of endangered species protections.
I am not overly interested in the words that the Buddha allegedly said, since, over long stretches of time, words and translations get distorted. I am not overly interested in the words that Jesus allegedly said, since, over long stretches time, translations go askew, words get added and distorted. Even the early Coptic versions of the Gospel of Thomas (which many top scholars say preceded the other four gospels), and which the power-hungry Roman-appointed hierarchical bishops rejected, was not as pristine as the even earlier papyrus Greek fragments found of that cornerstone gospel. I am not overly interested in the words that Lao Tzu allegedly said, since, over long stretches of time, words and translations get distorted. (And each of the many translations of the Tao Te Ching is different.) I am interested in discovering spirituality on my own, and learning directly, without distortion, without merely depending on old words, organizations, translations, and ancient documents. They tried to get Walt Whitman to alter his poetry; he wouldn’t. They tried to get E.E.Cummings to alter his poetry; he wouldn’t. They tried to get me to alter my poetry; i wouldn’t. They like to stealthily insert their ideologies into the works of others, to suit their own ends, to suit their own self-serving needs. They often (over time) like to get their conniving, little hands into the works of others (and twist things around).
The Monarch that stands alone. Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
We live in extremely precarious times. We need to go beyond mere depression about things; we need to act and not merely “go along indifferently.” The planet is getting more and more overcrowded with people (and people are still cranking out more and more babies); there is less and less space (especially for animals and plants). Extinctions in nature are occurring at an unprecedented rate (with over a million species going extinct lately). There is much less healthy agricultural land (as pollution is creeping in everywhere imaginable). Carbon emissions and plastics are ruining the globe, while the Amazon and Western U.S. forests (and other world forests) burn rampantly, while some flat-earth political groups deny global warming and heavily contribute to the deterioration of the environment. There is less viable fresh water. Guns and weapons of mass destruction are on the rise; unfortunately, with many not realizing it, germ warfare is a very real possibility. Automated robots will soon be replacing millions of people in the workplace. The over-use of unnatural, made-made food products and the over-usage of synthetic medicines is making the human population more and more unnaturally sick and corrupt, with immune function diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, autism, cancer, depression, mental problems, and such things as diabetes becoming all too common, with increasing frequencies of occurrence. We are rapidly losing what little freedom we had; political figures are becoming more and more dictatorial and propaganda news channels (much like what Nazi movies did in the past) are making crass people believe very crazy/hateful things.
What is one to do regarding all of this obvious insecurity? Too many of us are looking at the problems fragmentarily. The problems are not isolated; one problem is related to another problem. There is a bigger picture that is more holistic, more comprehensive, insightful, and caring. We must look beyond the $-oriented opportunistic greed that is contagiously expanding as if it (i.e., such greed) is an accepted disease (that is OK). A holistic, truly compassionate, non-indifferent mind of wisdom and insight would not be a huge contributing factor (to the above terrible situations) and would even seriously try to help change things. A mind that operates in the old, traditional patterns, staying fragmentary, staying comfortable and barbaric (full of bias, indifference, and callousness) would not significantly help with the earth’s present very serious problems and with the problems that human beings face; such an indifferent/crass mind would merely continue to make the earth a living hell. We can be stable and holistic or we can be fragmented and uncaring. We can, (in all of this danger, fragmentation, and disorder), be order, wholeness, compassion, and largely be freedom from fear.
No matter how terrible or disorderly things may seem on the outside, wisdom would primarily be stability and joyous harmony on the inside, in consciousness; it’s wisdom’s responsibility. It’s wisdom’s responsibility not to be sad in a sad world; it’s wisdom’s responsibility not to be nuts in a nutty world. Empathy would still exist; we wouldn’t look away from the suffering of those (supposedly) at a distance, and we would act to help; it’s wisdom’s responsibily.
Ants caring for their young (larvae). Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
And here is an excerpt from the Monster in the Mirror song sung by Grover… (not that i ever watch Sesame Street with my big bird friends).
If your mirror has a monster in it, do not shout This kind of situation does not call for freaking out And do nothing that you would not like to see him do ‘Cause that monster in the mirror he just might be you
Singing “Wubba wubba wubba wubba woo woo woo” Wubba wubba wubba and a doodly do Wubba wubba wubba you can join in too
Halloween Delight … Note the series of long, fine hairs on this spider’s hind legs; they are likely used for web construction. … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
one budding diminutive why staring at the sky in that beautiful youthful wonderment of innocence beyond piggish power and far from cultivated fear so beyond the grip of authority beyond stuffy temples and stale priests and gurus beyond tests and drunken parties
sweet sky staring further than thought’s weary boredom and so far away from cold shoulds and musts
alive whole and unprogrammed
also looking down of course at tiny grasshoppers and katydids
Sweet little Katydid … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Don’t be a torpid, sluggish mind, indifferent about the environment, about others, and about goodness. We’ve been donating a lot, over the years, to all of the Hurricane victims (both to charities for humans and for dogs), including (recently) Dorian. These hurricanes are worsening over the years due to global warming. I see some bloggers who claim to love nature, yet they travel — in jets and planes that spew out tons of pollutants — to distant countries or far distant places to get “great nature photos.” I’ve been unfollowing such hypocritical behavior blogs. I’m not afraid of devils or goblins around Halloween. I’m more concerned about people who treat the earth wrongly, indifferently. We all can do more to help nature; we all could do less harmful things. Please watch the following Greta Thunberg video. I feel very sorry for kids these days; if things do not change, they — because of the increase in carbon dioxide — will not be able to breathe properly in a few short decades. 30% of all birds in North America (alone) have gone extinct in the last 50 years; they are the canaries in the coal mine, but most adults just don’t see it enough.
During the Halloween season, this is the new greeter at Walmart stores. … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Fourteen steps climbed to the top from the bottom An hour and fifteen minutes moved a short hand and a long hand One fishing line ignorantly reeled in what it thought it wasn’t Three opinions typed what was surely right Seven sayings scanned the screen in a zigzag fashion Thirty-seven pieces of candy looked forward to Halloween Twenty-five Black-Eyed Susans were arrested for trespassing
A breach on humanity. … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
It takes a lot of hard work to keep the colony healthy and thriving but i realize that the colony and i are one. We are each other. What each of us does is done for all. (Unlike those ruthless, competitive, bipedal apes, we are 100% cooperative and act for all.)
So here i am, hauling another large bounty of meat for the colony to feast upon. Maybe now i will finally get the recognition that i deserve. Maybe now i will be the great worker-ant that all of the other ants will aspire to be like.
But first, i must get this great bounty to the anthill. While they are feasting, they will be thinking of me. Oh lucky me for finding this treasure of voluminous, wonderful meat!
P.S. — Don’t cringe! (I know that you bipedal apes are watching… and judging.) You bipedal apes eat hairy cattle and pigs and unquestioningly think and feel that it isn’t gross in the least. So don’t judge!
Wonderful Meat-find #2 … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Neil Armstrong didn’t realize that he had a spider hitching a ride on his spacesuit (and that it jumped off and was what actually took the first lunar step). 🙂
Neil Armstrong didn’t realize that he had a spider hitching a ride on his spacesuit (and that it jumped off and was what actually took the first lunar step). 🙂 … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
And the space between a certain hand at a specific area of the face (i.e., that limited space between the hand and the face) constituted a certain consciousness
Now each of the hands had different lengths and colors and different numerals and experiences upon the face to go through
There were black hands with long lengths there were white hands with short lengths there were wide little yellow hands there were thin long red hands
For one space of a hand to hate another space of a distant hand was insanity since each hand was a part of the same one clock
For one space of a hand at four to want to eventually be wiser at eight was foolish since the space at four could never really be the space at eight
Unless the space at four could fully realize that it was the space of all of the other hands
There is the limited little dull space of the segregated self and there is the not-so-limited timeless space of vast intelligence vast compassion
Which would you rather be?
One takes no time whatsoever to get to
Timely Droplets within Spiderweb … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
It was such tremendous luck finding this big green meal for the colony
It is very difficult to move all of this fine meat toward our anthill but when I get it to the colony I will become a great heroine
I will be known as the one who courageously brought a lot of protein for the many larvae all the while risking being stepped on by those giant frightening bipedal apes I will be revered and may even be promoted to the job of attending to the Queen
Oh I am so very excited and happy
On the way to the colony … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Each living creature of life has a sensitive vibration of feeling, and many have a cherished awareness. We human beings somehow think that ours is “superior,” better, and magnificent. However, with much of our fancy ideas and thinking, we are destroying the ecological balance of the whole… of the globe. We perceive and think in the ways that we were taught to perceive and think… primarily in parts, fragmentarily. We see the so-called “outer environment” fragmentally, as what can be used piecemeal, to be exploited, manipulated, and used.
However, the so-called outer is really not separate from the inner. The observer is not separate from the observed. Similarly, space and matter are not separate from what time is. We are of matter’s (thought’s) doings; we are thought, time, and the movement of time. The intelligence of meditation takes place when thought is not merely habitual and endless. Thought/thinking is always partial, always fragmentary, and sequential. Real meditation is consciousness beyond the stirrings of its content; it is an effortless, unplanned, holistic quietness beyond mere fragmentation and sequential patterns. The timeless can only reveal itself when the mind intelligently perceives beyond the fragmentary movement of its content.
Grasshopper enjoying the view … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Violence not only involves shooting bullets, war, causing bloodshed, and physically abusing people. It often occurs in (and “as”) more subtle or less obvious forms that people do not perceive as what is involving violence. Conformity, remaining in a mold that you were programmed to be in, indifference, and imitation are indicative of violence. Many lick the boots of authority, stay trapped in narrow, separative views about being a superior race, country, or religious group. Many of these things tend to separate people socially, religiously, globally, psychologically and otherwise… and are (whether we like to admit it or not) forms of violence, conflict. Many of us worship authority and power, the people with a lot of money and influence, and many of us ignore the person who is bereft of much intelligence and financial success. Many of us are ruthlessly competitive, which is a form of violence (that we were miseducated to accept and think is normal and wonderful)… while real compassion, much cooperation, and holistic awareness (in the classroom) are still rarely touched upon.
Educating children in a run-of-the-mill, standard, ordinary fashion is a form of violence. Cramming 30 kids in a stale classroom and indoctrinating them to conform to a lemming-like existence, to be slaves and victims of comparison, competition, and separative views, is violence.
Mindlessly doing things that pollute the environment, without deeply considering the consequences or trying to alter one’s behavior, are forms of violence. One can go on and on, further upsetting people about the forms of violence that they contribute to (or that they may be involved in). What about violence ending? Merely trying to control violence may not be a full, prudent answer to ending violence. Psychologically, the controller is not really separate from the controlled. A broken, miseducated, limited mind, trying to control violence, will only go so far… to a very limited extent. It will operate within (and “as”) the confinements of its limitation. For violence to fundamentally end, the mind must go beyond its conditioning and limitations; it cannot likely do that if it comfortably remains circumscribed by the limitation of others. Most people, of course, will just not care about this. Limitation, imitation, and mere conformity seem to be the norm.
Long Dash Skipper Butterfly … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
A true love of nature stays local as much as possible and avoids using deadly fossil-fuel jet planes and fossil-fuel road vehicles to travel world-wide to go to “exotic” nature places; such worldwide-sight-seeing (and picture-taking) is not loving nature; nature is not a Disney Amusement Park. Our globe is very delicate, fragile, and we have been brainwashed and conditioned to think nothing of traveling long distances for mere amusement purposes. Aircraft emit staggering amounts of CO2, the most prevalent manmade greenhouse gas. If you love nature, stay local.
His inquietude made him what he was… a repetitive jumble of endlessly clamoring mental symbols that were not realities (i.e., they were the typical unreal, fabricated images of the mind).
Her quietude was the immense beauty that she was… a comprehensive wholeness of undivided reality, actualities of timeless life movement beyond the known (i.e., beyond mere superficial symbols of thought).
Neural Networks Personified … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
The very wise ToadMaster perched near the toadstool, and with his croaky voice, he summoned all of the little tadpoles to swim up to the riverbank to hear another lesson.
He, in his sagely way, bellowed, “Unfortunately, many of the upright, large apes — that we have mentioned in the past — foolishly refuse to judiciously see that they too evolved from swimming fish, even as you here, as swimming tadpoles (through a long passage of time), will soon be leaving your aquatic existence to join our terrestrial lot. What is even more unfortunate is that the upright apes continue to mindlessly throw toxic debris into our water habitats and also onto the beautiful terrestrial domain that you will all soon be graduating to. The upright, large apes continue to make things that destroy things. The upright apes can be downright destructive and dangerous, though some of them are very kind and considerate. Overall, the whole world’s life forms are all rapidly disappearing due to what these, large bipedal creatures are mindlessly doing. Even as they claim that one of their kind is a God, they endlessly continue to pour cement and plastic over living things and spew out much toxic debris, killing our planet. They often do what is called “mowing their lawn,” which they think is very beautiful (though such activity callously cuts and kills many precious creatures, including us amphibians.) When you hop on land — which you all will be doing soon — do so with extreme caution, and avoid these large, bipedal creatures at all costs… and please
do your best to survive in the excessive heat (due to the climate rapidly changing).”
More, yet again, is presented here on psychological time. Most of us still function — in the psychological-sense — as if we are in time, as if we are (somehow) something separate from (or apart from) time. The best scientists, including Albert Einstein, have told us that time and space are not two separate things; they have told us that spacetime is one holistic thing. Yet we go on in this barbarian, primitive way… acting as if we are merely “in time” and not acting with the intelligence that sees that we are indeed what time is. The thoughts that we exist as actually exist as networks of neurons and neural components in (and “as”) matter in our brains. Our thoughts emanate from (and depend upon) a very material process… involving matter. This matter — this brain oriented matter — must be constituted of physical materials just like what is contained in stars and planets. This matter is, per se, a form of space. And space and time are not two separate things; they are one. They are different in their aspects, but they are one. We are time (not merely in time).
Now here is the crux of the matter (that we are pointing to). Let’s say you wish to (psychologically) “get better” in time. That distance, that is from where what exists “now” to what “you say you ‘will be'” takes up psychological space. It is a limited (psychological) space projected concerning a “here” to “there.” When you see someone of a very different familial or racial heritage than you, there often exists — in each of many people — a psychological space between “you” and “them,” between your group and their group. What we are suggesting is that the limited space of “here” to “there,” with your “I” or “me” psychologically “getting better in time” situation, is remarkably similar to the space separation with your “you” and “them” situation. We are all extensions of the same holistic spacetime movement, and “as it,” in reality, we are not separate things. Some perceptive people will see this; others (i.e., most) will just go on being stuck in primitive perspectives and will go on being greedy about the future and indifferent about others. You are time; space too is what you are… and if that space is limited and illusory, consciousness will be limited and illusory. If you merely remain as that limited space between “now” and “tomorrow,” and if you merely remain as that limited space between “you” and “them,” then primitive illusion is what you are; and primitive illusion is not separate from what suffering and ignorance is.
Right now we are a society that gobbles up tons of synthetic pills (instead of solving the real, fundamental problems about health and mental wellbeing); we overpopulate the planet and do all kinds of hateful and callous things to “others”… including “other life forms.” Many of us were miseducated to be stuck in indifference, separation, and blindness… and the wealthiest powers that be (at the top) are delighted… (although, in reality, they are suffering and are a tremendous cause of suffering).
That timeless and immense perception can only occur when limitation is understood… when limitation ends psychologically.
Wild Blue Vervain and Bumblebee … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Looking beyond the darkness … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
9/11 was an extraordinarily tragic thing. Far worse than 9/11 is losing the ecological balance of the earth. The earth is currently collapsing, nature-wise, because of our shortsightedness. Heartless political forces, so-called big business, and indifferent so-called humans are zealously steering many of us in the wrong direction. We all need to do much more. A collapsing earth is a most terrible thing. Stay local, use alternative energy, recycle, and vote green.
Marla, my wife, said that my poems occasionally need to be more uplifting, so the first poem (here) is meant to fulfill that end. The second poem is what was written before her comment.
Poem #1
Here in his hands is a flowery treasure with sweet petals and leaves much joy beyond measure
He is of hopes and images where as he ascends up in the elevator flowing fields of smiling imaginary angels open doors that were dreamt of later
Can we lift a luminous whole and bring new minds out of below rise to the top ever so mindfully in a towering highrise deep in the heart of Chicago?
(Well, elevators are uplifting, aren’t they?)
Poem # 2
There was a pond and every time a frog jumped into the pond the pond became a little froggier a little splashier
There was a grasshopper and every time he landed upon a weed the weed became a little leggier a little jumpier
There was a propagandizing political news-channel and every time a person watched it the television became a little duller and a lot more dim-witted
Leopard Frog, a species that will not survive long in a world filled with crass people who do not act diligently to prevent global warming and who think that “Windmills cause cancer.”. … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
They called her Little Icky Vicky(and she cried a lot in pain)today because of her distorted facial features many people stared then quickly looked away
I called her Victoria & amiably sat next to her in grade school(& always with her was very very kind) There’s a lot of cold(cruel kids who name-call with dark dead hearts)and blind
[Side Note: We saw the movie The Peanut Butter Falcon over the weekend. It is highly recommended. It contains scenes involving both bullying and compassion.]
Not Mere Facial Beauty but Beauty Deep Within … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Whom are we kidding? Most people do not change fundamentally no matter what you tell them, no matter what you write about. We are writing here about changing immeasurably beyond what most people consider “changing” to be. I do blogging mostly for one reason only: to help people to explore their true relationship with everything and look into the possibility of discovering something really sacred (beyond what most of us merely conceptualize about by what was implanted into us by old traditions and antiquated customs). Medals aren’t given to those very few in the world who were truly enlightened (i.e., visited by that ineffable, eternal energy). Halos aren’t given either. (Far too often, unfortunately, it is the blind leading the blind and it’s one hell of a mess out there; a lot of people assume that they can clearly see… according to what was spoonfed into them.) Real perception is a radical and beautiful explosion beyond what you were merely taught.
Speaking of seeing, my macro-nature photos are all well and good but, fundamentally, they are two-dimensional snapshots of the past that are rather trivial in their own superficial way. (The photos are squat compared to the prose writings offered in terms of the possible value to people’s lives regarding going beyond gross conditioning and limitation.) Much of what i write — we are referring to the prose stuff here — is only mildly deep (i.e. we could go much deeper), though a good portion of it does go somewhat deeper. Will what i write help many people to change fundamentally? (Probably not.) A real, fundamental change would leave a person totally shocked at what the implications are… and totally shocked by what actually, phenomenally happens; a totally different kind of human being, from the standard, same-old fare, would emerge. But the chances of that occurring are very small indeed. People, in this sense (i.e., the sense that we are talking about) — due to deeply ingrained conditioning, etc. — just do not change. They basically (fundamentally) remain the way they were.
Yellow Tiger Swallowtail … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Here is a place where everything is not so everything is never here where delusive selfishness reigns in its spot
And timelessness an eternally sweet wholeness where when doesn’t matter while “getting to heaven” is foolish like tissue paper in busy rainfall clatter
Diminutive Leafhopper Nymph (just 2 or 3mm long) … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Wishy and Washy were fun-loving gals and many folks knew that both were loyal (trueblue) pals
Washy (without Wishy) went to the laundromat (with a basket that she had her clothes in); later, the clothes were all swishy and went into full-spin
Wishy, however, was sitting in her comfortable, convenient chair pining for great nature photos at which she could stare
So, instead of viewing blog photos of nature (which you often appreciate) get over to the clothes-washer and put your laundry in (because it’s getting late)
Purple Wildflowers … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Hermann Minkowski and Albert Einstein taught us about how space and time are not two entirely different things but are, together, one. However, most people just do not get what that means, psychologically and fundamentally, including a lot of supposedly smart scientists. Years ago, when i was much younger, i used to hang around the quantum physicist Professor David Bohm, whom Einstein fondly called his “spiritual son.” Bohm was a famous scientist in his own right and when we discussed things, i was already well aware of the implications of spacetime and what that meant psychologically and on a larger scale.
Space and time are not two separate entities; together they are one. If you look at nature and people merely with psychological separation, with psychological space, as most people do, that very separation helps to support and produce an abstracted, psychological “I” or “me.” If you perceived without such (learned) separation, the “I” or “me” need not exist (which would be fundamentally way more accurate). If you say, “I will be trying to be ‘good’ so that I can eventually get to heaven,” you are supposing that you are something separate from time (in time)… rather than the actuality of being what time is. Your brain consists of matter (which often functions to react as thoughts), and matter is space, spacetime. Of course, we have to use time (in the physical world) to get to work on time or to be at a specified meeting on time. To use time to get somewhere psychologically or spiritually, however, is largely fallacious. Wishing to advance over time spiritually presupposes that you are “in time” and are not what “time is.” Mentally manufacturing a separation between you and time (except for certain time-oriented physical things, like the ones mentioned… and for using our crude, unfortunate language system) is often a process of wasting energy and is inviting great deception. Both the aforementioned psychological space separation and the psychological time separation are illusory; together, both help to create the fallacious and selfishly separate ego. (One cannot be in communion with the timeless if one is a series of fragments of time that erroneously presuppose that they are “in time” advancing spiritually.)
Eternal and orderly phenomena can exist (in humans) without the ego (i.e., without any psychological center). As we have often suggested, the central ego is essentially fallacious and illusory. Habitually looking from (and “as”) it is an illusion; it is a fallacy that most people habitually cling to. Like a man who thinks that he sees vast water in a desert — you know that age-old mirage — and insists on fishing in it non-stop, stay completely with the ego if you wish.
When discussing things in public with people, we can still politely use the word “I,” while (all the while) being fully aware of its fallacious and deceiving attributes; it is one of the misfortunes of living in a society with a barbaric system of language. Professor Bohm diligently worked on helping develop a more accurate and scientifically evolved system of language, which he called the Rheomode. Later in life, Bohm learned of the Native American Blackfoot language, and also of other members of this Native American language family, all of which are very strongly verb-based and do not divide the world into solid categories (i.e., nouns) but, instead, describe in terms of processes and related movements. Link to short Professor David Bohm Video.
?what kind of heathen sacrilegiously writes on a consecrated,wordless day, asking us to transcend all of our mindless traditions
[Note: Today’s posting was inspired by a comment by a wonderful blogger that i follow who, last Wednesday, in a “Wordless Wednesday” that i posted, graciously commented that my words were missed. Thank you much, A Curious Introvert ! … and hugs to Cutie Fuzzy Doggy.]
Let’s follow Daddy-Long-Legs … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Is it worth all of the time & competition? Is surpassing and suppressing those below and impressing those above worth it? When you finally get to the top, is there really genuine happiness there or is it an empty lie?!
Getting to the Top … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Our neural networks — much like a computer — are hardwired and conditioned to accept and fully believe in a central (free-will oriented) regulatory agent whom we call “I.” This “I” to each of us, seems very concrete, dependable (i.e., always there to control), and stable. We never deeply question whether such a “center” really exists in the first place. I maintain that there is no legitimate “I,” which, of course, seems contradictory, (due to the crude structure and barbaric evolutionary phase of our current language system).
When one talks to people about there being no “I” they tend to feel rather apprehensive, threatened, and psychologically uncomfortable. After all, to them, one is threatening the very core of their psychological framework. Our physical body, the organism, perceives largely through the eyes. The eye tends to be what focuses on and examines things. A similitude exists in us (mentally) between the physical “eye” and our concept of the “I” of the mind. We say that the “I” examines; we say that the “I” perceives; we say it was decided by “me.” The brain’s associative patterns are, in pretty much everyone, deeply hardwired and conditioned to constantly be referring to and depending upon this “I.” (The physiology of the brain is much like a walnut, and scientists have — repeatedly, in different human individuals — surgically divided the two halves, producing two separate fields of consciousness in each skull, each permanently existing with no clue as to what the other half is thinking.) Our conditioning for so many mental things is deeply pre-programmed in us, and many factors, including physical health, past education, brain chemistry, and genetic influences, pretty much nullify any real “free-will” completely, whether we like it or not. We must act — not react — carefully and diligently, and we cannot do that if we believe in a lot of crap that isn’t true. In 1932, Albert Einstein told the Spinoza society:
“Human beings in their thinking, feeling, and acting are not free
but are as causally bound as the stars in their motions.”
What we are saying is that this “I,” in a tremendous way, is fallacious and unnecessary. Clinging to it is like clinging to that childhood Raggy Ann Doll that was mentioned years ago in one of my earlier blogs… clinging to it as if it was real, alive, and a dependable pal. We could live perfectly, compassionately, and timelessly without clinging to our fallacious “I”s. Scientists, as was mentioned before in my blogging, have suggested that our universe likely operates in a totally different way than what we think is happening now… and they, the writer maintains, are correct. It was, many years ago, when i understood the fictitiousness of the “I” and the foolhardiness of the concept of “free-will,” when real security, profundity, insight into eternity, and real order came… (and not before).
This life is relatively short — in the few years that we have to live — and if you don’t get it right, via understanding and insight, if you (instead) continue to cling to a lot of rotten, crude fallacies, then the consequences are eternal (and not nearly as sweet as they could be). There is great beauty and timeless splendor in life if life is seen without much illusion.
Neural Networks or maybe just Queen Anne’s Lace … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
So here we are, Master FourEyes, and i don’t think that what i write will change things enough
and i don’t think that what you nibble on will change things enough … and that’s OK; it’s OK
And when we look at each other each other we are And when each other we together look at oneself
Our unbelievable now is more timeless than any dead(stone-cold temple that replaced the prairies) while Mr. Death — whom so many fear — has nothing on us
because we livingly understand him(and smile with and beyond him) more than teardrops grow upwards and flowers flow down
Master FourEyes… who happens to be a Milkweed Beetle on, of all places, a Milkweed Plant … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
The comatoseness of the average-ordinary mind is the result of a cadaverous education.
Merely looking at life through a screen of symbols and labels — as most do — isn’t really looking at life at all.
Taking a shower isn’t good enough; cleanse yourself of the dusty, stale past.
One cannot be visited by that pristine ground of eternal sacredness unless one’s mind is of intense order and purity.
There is, despite what we were taught, no (real) separate ego or central “I” controlling thought/thinking; what occurs — other than what holistic insight and direct perception reveal — is mostly all conditioned reactions that one is not separate from.
Being photogenic isn’t important. Being whole, compassionate, and perceptive is important.
Yes, dears, I am your long lost auntie. We finally get to meet, my sweet loved ones! Life’s been tough, as you can see by all of the many timeworn scratches on my aged back. Come, come, I have some sweet, fresh salad for you to enjoy! You had better eat it while it’s fresh… that way, you will get all of the best vitamins that will help you grow.
Eat plenty, eat! After we eat, that is when your loving auntie will hug you dearly. We’ll hug and hug to make up for all of the lost time that has befallen us. Now, let’s eat, dearies, let’s eat!
Photo of Your Long Lost Auntie … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
My wonderful, magnificent pet frog croaked, and i was very sad. The next day, he was quite alive, and i was very happy. But then, my wonderful, magnificent pet frog croaked, and i was very sad. The next day, he was quite alive, and i was very happy. But then, my wonderful, magnificent pet frog croaked, and i was very sad. The next day, he was quite alive, and i was very happy. But then, my wonderful, magnificent pet frog croaked, and i was very sad. The next day, he was quite alive, and i was very happy. But then, my wonderful, magnificent pet frog croaked, and i was very sad. The next day, he was quite alive, and i was very happy. But then, my wonderful, magnificent
pet frog croaked, and i was very sad.
The next day, he was quite alive,
and i was very happy.
But then, my wonderful, magnificent
pet frog croaked, and i was very sad.
The next day, he was quite alive,
and i was very happy.
But then, my wonderful, magnificent
pet frog croaked, and i was very sad.
The next day, he was quite alive,
and i was very happy.
But then, my wonderful, magnificent
pet frog croaked, and i was very sad.
The next day, he was quite alive,
and i was very happy. Ad Infinitum… 🙂
My Eastern Gray Tree Frog named Infinitum … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Experience… what is it, and why do we exclusively depend upon it? A lot of people say, “I’ve learned from experience”; or they say, “I will learn from my experiences.” Many people go on expensive and lengthy vacations to far distant places to get “exotic experiences.”
Experiencing has its place. However, it is very limited. Many crave “new” experiences… but are such experiences — all based on patterns of recognition — really all that “new”? I am suggesting that fundamentally, intrinsically, they are all very much the same and are not really so “new”; they all depend on — and add to — patterns within the field of the mundane known. (That is why many of us retain a deep, inherent sadness, even though we travel to places that should seem new and exciting. Merely existing as a brain that is based primarily on patterns and the recognition of patterns… is sorrow. But that is what most of us were trained to exist as.) Most of us were brainwashed to crave various “wonderful” experiences (i.e., more and more experiences)… through commercials, magazines, examples in books, and by what friends and relatives say and do. (Experiences are never enough, though, because they are essentially limited. But nobody tells you that.)
Evading experience (on the other hand) can be a very childish thing, wherein one endlessly sits cross-legged, for example, thinking that one is accomplishing something special. (You know… all that phony so-called meditation stuff, which is really a glorified form of self-hypnosis.)
Is the experiencer all so separate from what the experience is? If one examines intelligently, the answer is rather obvious: “No.” We look with (and “as”) accumulated patterns and labels at things, pigeonhole them in the rather musty memory bank system and call the experience “new.” To really see something new, perception itself must be dynamically new, fundamentally different, and not based on old, stale systems (and patterns) of observation. Most people are incapable of that, and you don’t get it by sitting in a corner with your legs crossed. Additionally, you don’t get it by reading traditional so-called “religious” books that have been severely distorted over time.
There is a deep, orderly intelligence that is a true spiritual blossoming that is beyond the thoughts and fabrications of man… beyond all of the rituals, stone temples, and concocted patterns. (Those fabrications are all old, and the timeless, miraculous new does not dwell as them.) Deep intelligence is a dynamic harmony, a deep order that effortlessly flows between experiencing and going beyond experiencing. (Constant experiencing and “accumulating” only builds up the illusion of the self.) The “going beyond experiencing” factor (or dimension) is never planned or mentally arranged for. Deep, spontaneous newness and dynamic creativity are never part of a plan or contrived methodology.
[Note: While photographing this Monarch caterpillar, it noticed the camera and suddenly went from high activity and movement to total stillness. More of us would be better off by letting total stillness — of the mind — occur more often (even though it is not merely an occurrence and has nothing to do with time or effort).]
Monarch Caterpillar … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Once there was a very rich man who, every time he saw people in need, would quickly pass them by, saying, “Sorry, I don’t help strangers.” Then, over a short span of time, the man lost everything. When he reached out for help, the first person who passed him by mumbled, “Sorry, I don’t help strangers.”
There was a man who, every time he looked up, worried about what was down… and every time he looked down, worried about what was up. He suddenly died. They buried him way down in the ground, facing up of course.
Monarch Butterfly on Cone Flower … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
A kind of postmortem examination was done on him long before his actual physical death
because unfortunately, his brain became quite un-alive after the innocent age of childhood.
Miseducation, brainwashing commercials, propaganda-oriented news networks, and being satisfied with remaining in one dull routine after another
all contributed to his cadaverous pseudo-existence. He often watches television and, of course, likes sports. However, the little birds who nest in his yard have far more compassion and life than he ever did.
Red House Finch Eggs … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Tom's Nature-up-close Photography and Mindfulness Blog 