Something Stronger Within
How do we go about finding meaning in existence? Are we ever explicitly taught to do so? Where would one go for such teaching? Perhaps long ago, the answer would have been some form of institutional school, but that no…
Know It All
The Volume Library. God love you, Dad. When you signed on the dotted line for that scam, you were trying to do the right thing. Your blood sugar may have been on the way down and you just wanted your…
A New Way of Living
Today is the first day of my new life. It sounds dramatic, I know, but I spent my old life avoiding drama at all costs. So, let’s double down on the drama: everything I thought I knew was just guessing.…
Who Wrote that Book?
Most of my life was largely guided by unquestioned assumptions: my parents loved me, school was a good thing, following the rules was a guarantee of success. I know that my parents loved me, but the other stuff? Well, let’s…
No, One Size Doesn’t Cut It
I like the concept of subsidiarity. An early explanation for the idea can be found in The Old Testament. In the 18th chapter of Exodus, Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, shows up in the wilderness and observes how Moses interacts with the…
Don’t Feed the Psychopaths
I remember my aunt’s shock when she learned that I am not a fan of “higher education” and that I think far too many people choose to attend (and pay for) college. After all, I used to pontificate about the…
Illegitimate Truth?
I wonder how many of us ever consider the concept of legitimacy. Maybe we catch the cover of a magazine at the grocery checkout and think, “Oh, her. She’s beautiful.” Perhaps the image, instead, elicits an eyeroll, because we simply…
Steps in the Right Direction
A wind is blowing outside my studio. I like the sound and love to see the occasional leaf slowly drift through the chill air to the ground. Stella and Henry often race around the yard at this time of year,…
Each Interaction
People continue to surprise me, mostly because I should know better by now. I sometimes can’t believe how much credit I give people. Even after years of telling myself that other individuals draw different conclusions from life (and why wouldn’t…
Might This be Called Poetic Thinking?
I understand that there is little I can do about the chaos of the world that is burning now, but I can be informed. I can make the effort, do the work, study, read, look at issues from more than…
On Education and Coercion
With our freedoms rapidly being stolen, thanks to a narrative bent on inciting pandemic panic, I found this old post, written 7 July 2018, quite timely. As I near the end of Blood and Thunder by Hampton Sides, I find myself shaking…